Hell On The Heart
by Winchester Ink
Summary: Loving a Winchester boy isn't as easy as it looks but sometimes you've got to put yourself through Hell in order to get a little piece of Heaven...
1. Walk On The Ocean

**Walk On The Ocean**

The bell rang for the end of morning classes and Gina made her way towards her locker, hugging her books close to her chest. It was lunchtime but her mind wasn't on food. It was on the tall, dark-haired, green-eyed son of her father's friend, John Winchester and it had been for quite a while. In fact, she couldn't recall what her last class had been about because she had been busy playing out scenarios in her head where she ended up alone with Dean Winchester and he would finally ask her out. Reaching her locker, she punched in her combination and shoved her books inside before pulling out her purse and slinging it over her shoulder. As she closed the metal door, she felt her heart skip a beat and her stomach lurch as she came face to face with the boy she had just spent the last hour or so daydreaming about.

"Hey G'," Dean grinned, locking his green gaze onto hers and Gina felt the heat in her cheeks rise as she stared back at him, reveling in the sound of his nickname for her passing his sweet lips.

"Hey Dean," She managed to say, her mouth going dry at the thought of actually having to talk to him especially after the things she had been thinking about in class that involved his mouth doing more than just talking.

"So, uh," Dean leaned against the lockers beside him confidently. "What are you doing for lunch?"

"Oh, I'm just going to meet up with some friends, I guess…"

"How about you skip that and come for a ride with me instead?" Dean smirked, pulling the keys to his Dad's Impala out of his jeans pocket and dangling them in front of her face. "I promise I'll make it worth your while," He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and Gina blushed, averting her gaze. "Oh, come on," He reached out a finger and tilted Gina's chin up so that she had no choice but to look back at him. "I won't bite…" He winked playfully at her and Gina chuckled, nodding her head in a moment of bravery as she smiled back at him.

"Okay, I'll go with you…"

"Great!" Dean seemed more than pleased with her response and moved to place his arm around her shoulders as he guided her down the hallway, towards the school's parking lot. "I was hoping you were going to say that…"

"Yeah?" Gina peeked up at him from under her eyelashes and Dean chuckled.

"Yeah, I've been dying to get you alone for a long time. There's something I want to ask you…"

Living in Southern California had its advantages, Gina mused. For one, she was able to enjoy the sight of Dean Winchester in a grey fitted tee, free from the constraints of his usual leather jacket and plaid shirt combo because of the warm sunshine and the other reason being that they could skip an afternoon of school in style down at the beach. Dean had drove them towards the coast upon Gina's suggestion and they were now parked up in a quiet spot not too far from the pier where they could watch the huge Ferris wheel turn around and around even though it's carts were empty. Dean slumped back in his seat, his arm stretched out over the back of it as he watched the fairground ride before glancing at the pretty brunette beside him.

"You ever been on one of those?" He asked her, Gina nodding her head as she looked back at him.

"Yeah, once or twice…" She smiled. "The view is amazing from the top; you can see the whole town…"

Dean grinned, a plan suddenly forming in his mind as he pulled the keys out of the ignition and reached for the door handle.

Gina watched him in confusion; "Dean, what are you doing?"

"I'm going for a Ferris ride; I've never been on one…" He replied, stepping out of the car and turning to peer back in at her. "Are you coming?"

Dean didn't wait for her reply, choosing instead to close his door and stand beside the Impala with his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans as he waited for her to join him. Gina studied him from her seat, observing the way he was watching the Ferris wheel like a child would eye up a shiny toy in a shop window. She also seized the opportunity to allow her eyes to wander over his stature, admiring the way his t-shirt fit snugly against his toned torso and how his jeans hung off his hips just right. Then she realized that she was sitting in his car stealing glances at him when she could be accompanying him on his first Ferris wheel ride and she hurriedly got out of the car, Dean turning to look at her when he heard her close the door.

"You took long enough…" He teased, flashing her a smile that could melt the most frozen of hearts and she shrugged her shoulders at him.

"Well, you know, I'm not usually one for ditching class and going to fairgrounds with a boy I hardly know…" Gina shot back as she walked up to him.

Dean let out a laugh, slipping his arm around her shoulders almost as if that's where it was intended to be and Gina felt herself lean into his touch.

"I'd say you know me a lot better than most girls I've met…" He told her as they started the walk towards the pier. "I mean, the fact that you know what my Dad really does kinda takes the pressure off having to find a reason for our short stay…"

"I only know because he works with my Dad and sometimes…" Gina paused, wondering if she should say what was on her mind and Dean glanced sideways at her, offering her a knowing smile.

"Sometimes you wished you didn't know what really went bump in the night so that you could pretend to have a normal family?" He asked, Gina smiling at the fact that he seemed to know what she was thinking.

"Yeah…"

Dean squeezed her shoulders, pulling her closer to him; "Yeah, me too…"

They reached the pier, Dean leading them towards the Operator's box of the Ferris wheel and Gina couldn't help but feel safe and contented under his arm, as if she was supposed to be there. During their walk she had summoned up enough courage to wrap her arm around his waist and Dean had smiled at her, letting her know without words that it was okay. They came to a halt outside their intended destination, Dean dropping his hold on Gina for a moment so that he could talk to the guy running the ride and the brunette sighed at the loss of contact with him. She didn't have to go without his touch for long though as he quickly returned to her side, taking her by the hand as he led her onto one of the empty Ferris wheel carts and smiling wickedly.

"What are you looking so pleased about?" Gina wanted to know, glancing at him as he sat down beside her and the ride operator made sure they were secure before returning to the box to pull the lever that would begin their skyward journey.

"Oh, you'll see…." Dean chuckled softly, one arm around Gina's shoulders as the other hand gripped the metal bar across them and the cart jolted as their ride began.

They slowly but surely started to climb towards the pale blue sky, Gina pleased that Dean was experiencing his first Ferris ride on such a beautiful cloudless day. She stole a glance at him, smiling at the way he was looking out at the scenery in awe.

"Beautiful, huh?" The brunette asked, Dean looking back at her.

"Yeah…" He grinned, his fingers finding the ends of her chestnut locks. "So's the view…"

Gina felt herself blush, quickly glancing away from Dean for fear of him seeing her cheeks turn a deep shade of pink.

"Oh, don't go all shy on me now, G'…" Dean groaned, bringing his other hand up to turn her face back towards him. Their gazes locked and for one fleeting moment Gina thought that he was finally going to kiss her but then the ride suddenly jolted to a halt and she realized that they had stopped at the top.

"Perfect timing…" Dean muttered, Gina furrowing her brow at his words.

"Perfect timing for what?" She wanted to know and Dean chuckled again, looking out across Southern California.

"You know, G', for such a smart girl you can be really dumb at times…"

"What are you talking about, Dean?" Gina quizzed him and he looked back at her, his green eyes staring into hers.

"I'm talking about this. Us…" He gestured between the two of them. "We both know what's going on here but it seems I'm going to have to be the one to say it…"

Gina shook her head; "If you're about to say what I think you are, then don't. Because believe me I have played this scene out in my head a thousand times and as good as it is, the ending sucks…"

"Who said anything about it ending?" Dean asked, Gina rolling her eyes at him.

"You'll be leaving in a couple of weeks, Dean, and I probably won't get to see you ever again…" The brunette pouted, realizing that the ride hadn't started moving again and she glanced down at the ground worriedly. "Why aren't we moving?"

"Because I paid the guy a couple of extra bucks to keep his up here longer than usual…"

Dean admitted, Gina looking back at him in surprise. He slipped his arm out from around her shoulders and brought both of his hands up to rest against Gina's cheeks. "I wanted to be alone with you somewhere we wouldn't be disturbed…"

Gina felt her heart beat faster as he stroked the pad of his thumb against her skin and stared back at her intently.

"I'm not good at this stuff, G'. I'm not good with the whole heart stuff, never have been…" Dean began. "But you… You make it better, easier… If I only get to have you for a couple of weeks then they'll be the best two weeks of my life because I'd rather have fourteen days with you than not have you at all…."

Gina swallowed back the lump forming in her throat; "Dean, what are you saying here?"

"I'm saying that…" He paused, taking a breath to compose himself. "I'm saying that I love you…" he continued, Gina unable to refrain from smiling at his words. "I don't know how, I don't know why but… I fell in love with you Gina Baker and now I can't imagine a single day of my life without you in it…."

Gina opened her mouth to respond but before the words could leave her mouth, Dean crashed his lips to hers and kissed her with everything that he had and in that moment, in that one single breathless moment, Gina knew that she loved him too.

The day rolled on, the Ferris wheel ride now no more than a memory in Gina's mind but as she walked barefoot along the beach with her hand locked in Dean's she knew that this was only the beginning of what was going to be a relationship that would always play a significant part in her life. The sun was starting to set, fading into the horizon as it cast an orange glow across the sky that was gradually growing darker.

"We should probably start heading back…" Dean suggested with a hint of reluctance in his voice. "School finished hours ago and I'm pretty sure your Dad will be wondering where you are…" He glanced down at Gina who was staring down at her feet, watching the way the golden sand covered her toes with every step they took. "Hey, you okay?"

Gina looked up at him, frowning; "I don't want to go home, Dean…"

Dean stopped in his tracks, pulling her to him before dropping his hold on her hands and wrapping his arms around her waist; "Are you forgetting that I'm staying at your place for a while, G'?"

Gina shook her head, bringing her hand up to rest over his heart as the other kept hold of her shoes and she smiled up at him; "No, I could never forget that. You've pretty much been on my mind since the day you showed up in town…."

"Then what is it?" Dean asked, bringing one hand up to push her chestnut curls back away from her face. "You can tell me anything, baby, you know that…"

"It's just…" Gina paused, collecting her thoughts and trying not to get lost in the emerald pools staring back at her. "I guess I just want to keep you to myself for a little bit longer…" She confessed, Dean chuckling and leaning forward to kiss her forehead.

"If I keep you out any longer, your Dad is gonna gank me the same way he ganks demons…" He smiled, their gazes locking for a moment before their lips met in a sweet kiss that Gina never wanted to end.

The sun sunk further down into the ocean, blackness creeping into the world as the two teenagers lost themselves in each other's embrace. They both knew that they should be heading home soon to face whatever lecture their respective parents had for them but for now, they didn't care because they were in each other's arms and that was all that mattered to them.

Gina and Dean walked hand in hand up the path that led up to the Baker's house, Gina smiling when she saw he baby brother, Matt, sitting on the front porch with his redheaded female friend from school.

"Hey Matty…" She greeted him, Matt's head snapping up from the video game in his hands upon hearing her voice.

"Gina! Dad is gonna kill you!" The youngster told her, Gina sharing a glance with Dean before shrugging her shoulders.

"My day was totally worth it…"

"I can see that…" Matt groaned, rolling his eyes at his big sister and pulling a face at her public display of affection with one of their house guests. "Do you guys have to do that? It's disgusting!"

"Trust me, little man, when you get older you'll want to do this and a whole lot more with chicks just as hot as your sister…." Dean smirked, Gina slapping her free hand against his chest.

"Dean!"

Dean laughed, shrugging his shoulders; "I'm just telling him the truth…"

Gina shook her head at him, releasing her hold on his hand to walk up the steps leading to the front door of her family home aware that Matt's school friend was watching her the entire time. She turned to smile down at the young girl.

"Hey Harlow…"

"Hey…" Harlow replied shyly, watching as the brunette she admired opened the door just as a young dark-haired boy about Matt's age was about to walk out onto the porch.

"Oh, hey Sammy!" Gina beamed, ruffling the young boy's hair as she stepped aside to let him pass and he pulled a face at her as he smoothed down his messy hair.

"It's Sam!" He insisted, Gina laughing as she walked inside and Dean bounded up the porch steps to join her.

"Is Dad around, Sammy?" He asked Sam, gazing down at the youngster who nodded his response.

"He's inside and he's not happy with you…"

Dean ruffled his little brother's hair just like Gina had seconds ago; "Thanks for the heads up, little brother…"

Sam watched his big brother walk into the house they were currently staying at before looking back at Matt who was wrapped up in his handheld video game again. The redhead sitting beside him kept her icy blue gaze on Sam but when Sam turned to glance back at her she quickly turned away, muttering something about her Dad being mad if she was late home before running off down the path. Sam watched her go, intrigued by her actions as he took her spot beside the youngest of the Baker children.

"Hey, who was that?"

"Harlow Madden…" Matt replied without looking up from his game. "Some chick I know from school…"

"Huh…" Sam stared out into the street as if to be hoping to catch another glimpse of the redhead and Matt looked at him, noticing the way he was gazing out into the nothingness of the night.

"Man, you're just like your brother…" He chuckled, shaking his head. "Girl crazy…"

Inside the Baker's home, Dean and Gina sat across from their fathers at the kitchen table listening to them both complain about how irresponsible they had been and that they both know better than to act so recklessly. Dean allowed his hand to fall to rest on Gina's knee underneath the table and the brunette squirmed beneath his touch as she tried to listen intently to what her father was telling her.

"Regardless of what you think, Gina, you need a good education behind you and skipping class is not the way to go about getting one…" Matthew Baker scolded his one and only daughter, his green eyes trained on her and the teenage son of his friend beside her as he loaded his pistol with rock salt bullets. "And you should know better than to take my daughter out of school, Dean…"

Dean looked back at Gina's father, his thumb stroking the brunette's knee as he made his apology; "I know and I'm sorry, sir… I just wanted to blow off a little steam…"

Matthew Baker snapped his gun shut, Gina flinching at the sudden movement but both of the Winchester men at the table hardly batting an eyelid.

"Well, young Winchester, next time you want to blow off a little steam I suggest you go off on your own rather than interrupting my daughter's studies…" Matt Senior placed his pistol down onto the table and stood up out of his seat, staring down at Dean. "And take your damn hand off her knee…" He added, Dean quickly shifting his hand back to his own lap as Mr. Baker left the room.

John Winchester sat silently in his chair, his face expressionless and his focus on the guns laid out in front of him. Dean and Gina exchanged a quick, wary glance before Dean leaned forward in his seat to speak to his father.

"Dad…"

John raised a hand, shaking his head at his first born son; "Don't, Dean…"

"Sir, we didn't mean to stay out so late…" Gina tried to apologize.

John exhaled loudly, bringing his gaze up to meet that of the worried teenagers facing him; "Gina, you don't need to explain yourself to me. I'm not concerned with where you went or for how long you went there for…"

The head of the Winchester family looked straight at his oldest son, his eyes locking onto his as he continued with his speech; "I'm more concerned about the fact that Sammy was left waiting for his big brother when school ended and if it hadn't been for Matt getting a ride home off Zack, he probably would have had to walk home. Alone…"

Dean hung his head, the disappointment in his father's eyes too much for him to bear and Gina reached under the table to gently place her hand on top of his, squeezing it reassuringly.

"You've got one job, Dean. One job…" John shook his head. "Look out for Sammy.

That's all I ask of you…"

Dean's head shot up, his jaw set as he glared at his father; "That's all I ever do, Dad!"

There was tense moment as the two Winchester men stared each other down, Gina sitting anxiously in her chair unsure of what she should do but relaxing when Dean lowered his head again, submitting to his father. She squeezed his hand again and Dean moved his hand to lace their fingers together, a subtle movement that made Gina have to bite down on her lip to refrain from smiling from ear to ear. John stood up, moving around his chair to push it back into position under the table before he stood and looked at the two teenagers for a moment. He knew that there was more than a simple friendship brewing between his son and the pretty daughter of his long-time friend and it pained him that he couldn't cut Dean a little slack to enjoy just one night with the girl he was interested in. He needed him too much, it was tough and it was too much responsibility to place on the shoulders of his eldest child but if Dean didn't look out for Sam then who would? He moved away from the table, picking up his journal from its resting place on top of his jacket folded up on the counter.

"We've got a hunt tonight…" He told the teens, turning to look back at them. "Dean, I'll need you to watch Sammy…"

"Yes sir…" Dean nodded his head obediently. "What's the hunt?"

"Just a regular salt and burn…" John replied, shoving his journal into the inside pocket of his dark waist length jacket as he picked it up. "Matt and I have got it covered, you kids just stay safe and we'll be back by morning…"

Matt Senior re-entered the room, ushering his youngest son and Sam inside ahead of him. He picked up the gun he had loaded previously and tucked it neatly into the waistband of his old blue jeans before picking up another smaller one and offering it, handle first, over to Gina.

"Zack will be here all night but I want you to have this just in case…"

"Dad, I don't need a gun," Gina protested, Dean looking up at Mr. Baker.

"Sir, with all due respect, I'll be here too and I can assure you that I am more than capable of taking care of your daughter…"

Mr. Baker's eyes narrowed at the young hunter; "I am well aware of that, Dean, but it's not demons I'm worried about tonight…"

"Dad…" Gina trailed off when her father looked back at her warningly, thrusting the gun into her hands.

"I'm your father; it's my job to protect you. Don't argue with me on this…" He told her and Gina nodded her head, accepting the small pistol reluctantly.

Matt Senior turned back to look at his long-time friend standing behind him; "Now, John, are we all set?"

"Good to go…" John nodded, picking up his backpack of supplies and swinging it over his left shoulder.

Half an hour later, John and Matthew had left on their salt and burn mission for the night, leaving the house under full control of Zack but as he was currently busy with his band in the garage, Gina took it upon herself to make sure that Matt Jnr and Sam got washed and ready for bed at a reasonable hour. It was a school night and she knew from experience that if no one reigned her little brother in and told him to go to bed that he would stay up all night and fall asleep during class tomorrow, something her father would not be too pleased about so she made sure that he was going to get a good night's rest.

Once both fourteen year olds were safely tucked up in Matt's room, the hand held video game confiscated for the night and Sam having to sleep on the guest air bed on the floor, the brunette crept back down the stairs to discover Dean waiting for her in the kitchen. His gaze locked on her mouth; "So, what are we going to do now?"

Gina licked her lips, trying to ignore the urge to just jump on him right there and then; "I don't know, what do you want to do?"

"Well, we're all alone…" Dean stepped closer to her, his lids lowering over those pretty green eyes of his as he lowered his head to meet hers. "There are plenty of things we could do that just involve the two of us…"

"What do you have in mind?" She asked him just before their mouths touched, his lips brushing over hers.

Dean caught her lower lip, nipping at it gently with his teeth. He seemed to enjoy doing that and Gina seemed to enjoy him doing it as she groaned and slid her arms around his neck, resting one of her hands at the back of his head. He pulled her closer to him, his fingers hooking into the waistband of her jeans.

"What are you doing?" Gina asked him, Dean smirking back at her.

"Something I've wanted to do all damn day…."

"What? You want me right here in the kitchen?" She whispered against his mouth, Dean responding with a grunt. "You know this is kind of kinky…."

"I haven't even gotten started yet…." Dean's tongue thrust between her lips. "I'm all kinds of kinky, baby…"

Gina moved to deepen the kiss but Dean pulled away slightly, licking and nipping at her bottom lip. She leaned into him, craving the contact of his skin against hers, her hands moving their way down his back and settling at his waist tugging the hem of his t-shirt up.

Dean tore his mouth away from hers, lifting his head to meet her gaze; "How long have we got the place to ourselves for?"

"Well, the boys are asleep and I'm pretty sure that Zack will be busy with his band for hours," Gina replied breathlessly, staring up at his handsome face with lustful eyes.

He flashed a wicked smile at her; "Yeah?"

"Yeah…"

"Good…" Dean stepped back, taking her shoulders in his hands and spinning her around before pulling her back against him.

Gina stiffened; "Dean, what the….?"

"Just relax, baby…." He demanded, his warm breath rushing against her ear. "I'm not going to hurt you," He pressed a kiss to the pulse point in her neck. "Unless you want me to, that is…"

Gina caught her breath; "What are you going to do?"

"Something that you're never going to forget…." Dean replied, his hands sliding up under her t-shirt.

His hands felt warm as they gently cupped her breasts through the thin delicate lace of her bra, his expert fingers hooking into the fabric and tugging them free. Gina squirmed underneath his grasp, unconsciously rubbing her ass against his groin feeling his erection pressing firmly against it from within the confines of his jeans.

"You like that?" He whispered hoarsely into her ear, his fingers roaming over her breasts making her ache for him to use them somewhere else.

"Don't stop…" She panted, resting her head back against his shoulder.

"I want you so bad, you know that?" He practically purred, releasing one of her breasts and sliding his hand down her torso until he found the button of her jeans. With one quick movement he popped it open and slid down her zipper, working a hand down into her panties. His fingers roamed over her delicate flesh, sliding easily in between her tight folds.

Gina groaned helplessly as two of his calloused fingers pumped away inside of her, stroking across the little nub of sensitive flesh they found nestled within her core and she arched her back, gasping for air.

"Oh Dean…." She breathed, setting her feet farther apart as he plunged his fingers deeper inside her working her into a frenzy.

"Say that again…." Dean paused his movements to suck lightly at her pierced earlobe.

"Dean…."

"I love the way you say my name…." He started pumping his fingers again, stroking his thumb against her clit. "I'm going to take you right to the edge, baby…." He kissed her neck. "And then…."

"Then what?" Gina groaned, feeling the orgasm building up inside of her as he teased her to unbearable heights of pleasure with those expert fingers of his.

He pressed himself further against her, burrowing his face in her neck as he rubbed his straining length against her ass; "And then I'm going to give you what you're aching for…."

She reached a hand around behind her, her fingers finding his imprisoned erection and kneading it gently before skillfully undoing his button, gripping his member within her palm making him gasp.

"How about we just get down to it right now?" The brunette suggested with a raspy voice, arching her back as he pumped both fingers into her depths, his teeth scraping against her throat.

"You'd like that, huh?" Dean groaned against her skin, Gina's hand palming his hardened length desperate to have it free from the confines of his boxers.

"Yes…." She moaned as he flicked a skilful thumb over her clit, her hands pushing down his jeans and boxers finally releasing him. Circling her fingers around him, she guided him to where she needed him to be and he was happy to oblige, bending her over the counter with a gentle push as he slid into her with ease. The fact that they could easily get caught at any moment only fuelled their passion and desire for each other, teenage hormones causing havoc with any sense of reason either of them had.

Gina's orgasm burst free the moment Dean started thrusting against her but he continued, gripping her tightly against him by her hips as she stifled her pleasurable groans for fear of waking up her brother and their youngest house guest. Dean kept going, moving back and forth enjoying the sensation of Gina's tight flesh gripping him as she straightened herself, her fingernails raking the bare skin of his arms. That first sweet wave of heaven sent pleasure was followed by a second and then finally a third as Dean joined her in the climatic ecstasy she was experiencing. He held her against his chest as they came together in a long blissful pulse of desire.

"Wow, that was…." Gina panted as she hung helplessly in his strong arms. "Amazing…"

Dean grinned behind her; "My pleasure, baby…."

"I've never…" She stopped to swallow, her mouth dry. "I've never come like that before…"

"I told you I was going to give you something that you were never going to forget…." Dean whispered against her ear, his hands slipping down to where she was still pulsating and caressing her.

"Again?" Gina gasped; she didn't think it was possible for them to repeat what they had just done.

Dean's finger slid inside of her as he nipped her earlobe; "You said we've got hours, right?"

He stroked along her walls, slipping another finger deep inside of her as he pressed himself up against her ass. Gina was surprised to find that he was hard again; she had obviously underestimated his stamina.

"Right…" She gasped, barely holding it together.

"Then I'm up for another round if you are," Dean breathed into her ear, his fingers pumping inside of her as she hung limp in his arms. "What do you say, baby? Shall we move this upstairs?"

Gina nodded breathlessly; of course she wanted to have a repeat performance of what had just occurred between them. She'd be crazy to turn him down, especially when her day had started out with daydreams about what she would do if she was ever alone with the one and only Dean Winchester. Now she was being offered the chance to bring her day to an end by making those dreams come true and so they helped each other dress before she led him by the hand up the stairs to her bedroom, intent on showing him what had been on her mind during class.

The following morning, Gina awoke tangled up in Dean to the smell of pancakes burning and knew that her father was attempting to cook breakfast again. He wasn't much of a chef, Matthew Baker Snr. He could kill a monster faster than you could blink and knew all kinds of lore about them but put him in a kitchen and he'd be lost. The brunette groaned, turning over in her bed to see Dean still sleeping soundly beside her, one arm resting against his bare chest as the other hung limply out of the bed. She took a moment to take in the beautiful sight she had woken up to, allowing her fingers to play with the amulet he wore around his neck as she gazed lovingly at him. It was strange, yesterday she had woken up longing to have him there beside her and now he was wrapped up in her sheets, her scent mingling with his and the marks she had made on his skin during their love-making last night still visible. It was like she was lost in some kind of dream and she decided that if that was the case then she never wanted to wake up, she would happily spend the rest of her existence at Dean's side. Of course that little fact was nothing new to her, she had known from the very moment she had laid eyes on the very handsome Dean Winchester standing on her doorstep with his father and kid brother that he was the guy for her but she never knew that anything would ever come of it. Dean had a history, Zack had warned her. He was the kind of guy to have a girl in every town they stopped in, staying just long enough to make them fall madly in love with him before he was off to the next town with his family, taking their unsuspecting hearts with them but yesterday when he had professed his love for her and poured his heart out on top of the Ferris Wheel, Gina knew that this time it was different. This time he was playing for keeps.

Dean stirred, rolling onto his side and burrowing his head further into the soft pillows. Gina smiled, watching him before leaning forward and pressing her lips to his tenderly.

"Dean, baby, wake up…" She whispered, kissing him again. "Hey, wake up, sleepy head…"

The young hunter opened one eye, smiling sleepily at the brunette gazing at him as he reached out and pulled her towards him.

"Hey you…" He murmured, crashing his lips against hers.

"Hey…" Gina grinned happily, enjoying the feeling of being wrapped up in his arms.

Dean pressed himself up against her, Gina giggling when she realized just how awake he really was and pushing her hand against his chest.

"Dean, its morning…" She told him. "Our Dad's are back, you should probably go…"

"Oh, I get it, you've had your way with me and now you're kicking me out…." Dean taunted her.

"Believe me I wouldn't kick you out of bed if someone paid me all the money in the world but if Dad catches you in here…"

"I'm a dead man, I know…" Dean groaned, releasing his hold on her and rolling over to swing his legs out of the bed.

Gina propped herself up on her elbow, clutching the sheets against her slender frame as she watched him start to dress. He turned to glance over his shoulder at her, smiling as he pulled on his t-shirt before leaning back to kiss her.

"Guess I'll see you downstairs for breakfast…"

"I guess so…" Gina smiled, stealing another kiss from Dean's lips before he rose from the bed and crept out of her bedroom. This was it, she thought as she watched him, this was what love felt like.

Their two weeks together were over before they realized and now Gina was standing on the porch of her home watching John Winchester pack up the Impala with the help of his sons. She couldn't believe that it was really happening, that Dean was really leaving. The past fourteen days had come and gone so fast they all seemed to blur into one blissful moment. Her father walked out of the house, carrying a folder and handing it over to his friend when he reached him. John nodded, taking the folder and moving to place it onto the front seat of his car before ordering his sons to get in. Sam complied with his request, waving his goodbyes to the Baker children watching him on the porch before sliding into the backseat of the Impala, ready to leave. Dean glanced at his Dad noticing that he was deep in conversation with Mr. Baker and ran up to Gina, pulling her into his arms the moment he reached her and kissing her deeply much to Matt Jnr's dismay.

Zack smacked his little brother upside the head and guided him towards the front door; "Come on, little man, let's leave these two lovebirds alone…"

Gina and Dean broke apart just as Zack and Matt disappeared inside the house, Gina glancing up at Dean with teary eyes. He stroked the pad of his thumb across her cheek and bent his head to brush his lips against her forehead.

"Don't cry, baby," He whispered. "I'll be back soon…"

"When?" Gina asked, Dean shaking his head as he let out a broken hearted sigh.

"I don't know, babe…" He replied sadly. "But soon…"

Gina clutched at his shirt, gripping greedy handfuls as she reached up on her tiptoes to press her lips to his; "Promise me you'll stay safe…"

"I promise…" Dean whispered, kissing her once more before he heard his father yell at him.

"Dean, we're burning daylight!" John scolded his eldest son. "Kiss the girl goodbye and move your ass!"

Dean rolled his eyes at his father's words before looking back at Gina apologetically; "I have to go, G'…"

Gina nodded her head, slowly releasing her hold on him and Dean kissed her for one last time before stepping away from her. He left the porch, turning to glance back at her.

"Take care of yourself, okay? I want to come back to find you in one piece…" He grinned at her and despite her sadness, Gina smiled back at him.

"I'll be right here waiting for you…"

Matthew Baker patted Dean on his shoulder as they crossed paths, the two men sharing a glance that was heavy with unspoken words about the heart broken girl standing on the porch with her arms wrapped around herself as she watched her boyfriend slide into the front seat of the Impala beside his father and slam the door shut. The engine of the car roared to life, the red taillights illuminating as John got the car ready to leave the Baker's driveway and Gina watched as it slowly started to drive away from her home. Her tears started to fall, her green eyes trained on the back of Dean's head as the Impala inched further and further away from where she was standing and her dad came to stand beside her, wrapping her up in his arms and kissing her hair comfortingly.

"Don't worry, honey, everything will be fine…" He whispered, Gina burying her face into his chest as she sobbed and the Impala turned out onto the street.

Dean sat quietly in his seat beside his dad, his gaze on the road ahead for fear of looking back and breaking at the sight of Gina crying over him. Sam sat in the backseat, a book open in his lap but as they headed down the road, hot on the trail of the latest lead his father had got on the yellow eyed demon, something told him to look up and as he did, he caught sight of the red haired girl that was friends with Matt walking towards the Baker's house. She glanced back at him, her blue eyes meeting his dark ones as the car passed her by and Sam shifted in his seat to look out of the back window, smiling slightly when he noticed that she was still watching him and he waved at her.

Harlow stood on the sidewalk, watching the black '67 Chevy Impala roll off into the distance with the dark-haired boy from Matt's house staring at her from the back seat. She watched as he waved at her and she raised her hand to wave back, a little unsure of what she was doing and as the taillights of the car faded into the horizon she found herself wondering if she'd ever cross paths with that boy ever again. But that was another story….

***This is just the beginning of a series of one-shots that will basically be an alternative version of Supernatural. Please be kind and leave reviews! Any feedback is welcome! – Winchester Ink***


	2. Between The Raindrops

**Between the Raindrops**

The minute hand couldn't move fast enough. Just as Gina began shutting down her office for the weekend, she saw the digital clock on her desktop move from 4:49 to 5:00. She quickly put her away message on her voicemail and shut down the computer before shutting the door of her office behind her and locking up. With her purse over one shoulder, she briskly walked down the hallway of the office, one hand balancing her leftover Starbucks from lunch and her cell phone while she dug around her purse for her sunglasses with the other. Just as she exited the building she felt the phone vibrate in her hand; rearranging her keys in order to see who the message was from and chuckling when she saw her brother's name on the screen. She knew he was anxiously awaiting their group's usual Friday night debauchery and figured it was a message telling her to hurry up and get her shit together and make her way to his house to meet everyone, and that she sucked for having a nine to five job.

Once she had settled herself in the car she quickly opened the message, her stomach twisting into knots when she read the message telling her not to go home, but to come to their fathers house instead; that he was canceling the plans they had with their friends for the night because this was more important. He never said anything else when she had responded, trying to find out if everything was okay with their dad, or if something happened to their younger brother. Without waiting any longer for a response she slammed the key into the ignition of her black Audi Coupe and sped off down Pacific Coast Highway, weaving in and out of traffic to get to her dad's house. By the time she pulled up the familiar driveway, she saw her dad's white Ford Explorer, Zack's black Audi, and an unfamiliar Ford pickup truck. She parked behind Zack's car and quickly grabbed her purse before running up the front steps.

The twenty six year old woman flew through the front door of her father's southern California home, wavy chestnut brown hair breezing behind her and green eyes shining with a worried glimmer that was somewhat uncommon for her. She skidded to a halt outside the kitchen almost tripping over the chunky heels of her camel color wedge booties. Smoothing over her black skinny jeans and caramel top she took a deep breath, preparing herself for what awaited her in the other room. As she turned the corner she gasped in surprise, her purse hitting the floor with a loud thud that alerted the other members of the house that she had arrived. The man sitting opposite her dad was none other than John Winchester, and he was accompanied by his two greatest accessories; his sons Sam and Dean.

"Oh my fucking god!" Gina breathed, just loud enough for everyone to hear the shock and, maybe a twinge of happiness in her voice.

Her eyes fell on the two younger Winchester's sitting at the table, both nursing a beer, both pairs of eyes trained on her. The soft caramel eyes of Sam held a humorous glimmer at her sudden outburst while the emerald eyes that belonged to Dean roamed her body from head to toe, a smile of appreciation and remembrance fixed to his handsome face. Her father, however, fixed her with a stern look while Zack laughed openly at his sister.

"Don't laugh at me asshole," She snapped, pointing at her brother. "You text me this cryptic shit when I'm leaving work, you don't answer so of course I think something's wrong with dad, and I fly over here and…" She stopped her rant when she realized that Zack had stopped laughing and was looking at her funny.

"And what?" Her father's voice held a soft chuckle as he turned in his chair to get a better look at Gina.

With a shaky breath she ran her fingers through her hair, not bothering to worry about the few pieces that had fallen into her eyes. She took the moment of silence to really look around the room before her eyes fell on the eldest Winchester man. John Winchester had aged, but not the way most men his age do. You could tell by looking in his eyes that he had seen things that the average person wouldn't deem a reality. She knew this; she had grown up having the Winchester's as frequent guests in her parent's home, despite how much her mother hated having them there.

"And the Winchester's are here," She finished, sighing once more before moving to the fridge and grabbing a beer for herself. "Not for nothing, but they're the last people I expected to see sitting in your kitchen."

"Are we really the last people you expected?" Sam asked, speaking up. "I mean God would be more likely than us."

"Doubtful," She replied. "I've seen your kind of weird Sammy, but never have I seen God."

"You'd be surprised." Dean replied while his eyes stayed focused entirely on Gina.

"Well, you do have your moments don't you Dean?" She replied, a playful tone to her voice.

He winked back at her, knowing no one but Gina would see it since she was standing on the opposite side of the kitchen while everyone else was on his side of the invisible line that was somehow still keeping the two of them apart.

It felt like an hour had passed before someone finally spoke up, Gina and Dean kept stealing glances at each other while their dad's sat quietly at the table with Zack and Sam, both lost in some kind of their own worlds.

"So, are we going to talk about this at all?" Zack finally announced before downing the rest of his beer.

"Well if you aren't eager…" John trailed off with a laugh

"I mean, I'm just trying to figure all out," He replied, standing to get another beer from the fridge. "You guys have been MIA for the last, what, ten years?"

"Eight." Gina and Dean replied simultaneously.

"Okay, the last eight years," Zack corrected, giving Gina a funny look while popping the top off the new bottle and taking a long sip. "And now you're just back, out of the blue, and sitting here looking over maps with dad and talking about some gun that's been missing since who knows when!"

She watched Zack finish his rant, arms flailing in every direction as only Zack could manage to do. She was sure he had held off on all of his questions while he waited for her to get to the house, which could only mean that he had a million floating around in his ever erratic brain. This was Zack after all.

Gina couldn't help but steal glances at Dean. If she thought he was good looking when we were eighteen, his teen years had nothing on him now. The past eight years had surely been kind to him; he had certainly maintained his handsome features as well as attained some of that rugged handsomeness that could easily make her weak at the knees had she not been leaning against the kitchen counter. And as handsome as he did in fact look, he also looked more aged than any twenty six year old should look; she could see it plain as day in his emerald orbs. Gina could tell that his father's lifestyle for hunting all things supernatural had caught up to him. Their want and desire to find the demon with the yellow eyes, the creature that had taken their mother when they were children was just a strong and potent as it was all those years ago; although sometimes Gina felt that it consumed his entire being no matter how many times he tried to deny it when they were younger. But no matter how she sliced it, or which way all of it was calculated; he was still Dean Winchester.

He was the boy with the green eyes when they were five years old. When they were ten, he teased her for still playing with "kiddie's toys." When they were fifteen, he was too cool for school, while Gina couldn't stop drawing on corners of napkins, and reading magazines like Vogue, and Cosmopolitan; scoping out the latest fashion trends. At eighteen, they discovered that they weren't very different; the children of hunters, looking out for our younger siblings, just trying to find some way to be normal teenagers. It wasn't until the Winchester's had showed back up on the Baker's doorstep all those years later did Dean and Gina really see what had been brewing since their childhood. It was Dean's rebel without a cause bad boy attitude, the keys to a 1967 Chevy Impala, and an afternoon of skipping school that finally sealed the deal for the two of them. It was a ride on the Ferris wheel overlooking the California skyline, a heartfelt confession, and a kiss. That simple kiss had set forth one of the greatest teenage love affairs ever; greater than anything an eighteen year old girl could fabricate in her imagination, and more than any eighteen year old boy might know what to do with. But not Gina and Dean; they were cut from the same cloth; kindred spirits. Dean and Gina were children of hunters.

"Gina, did you get any of that?" Her dad's voice suddenly interrupted her train of thought.

"Hmm, yea." She replied absentmindedly.

She heard her dad sigh and saw Zack shake his head while Sam and Dean tried to suppress a laugh.

"You haven't changed." Sam said, cracking a wide smile and glancing knowingly at the brunette.

"Neither have you, Sammy." She smiled back, tipping the beer bottle in his direction.

"What I was saying, while you spaced out over there," Matthew laughed. "Is that John and I are going to be trying to locate this gun, the colt, to be more specific; and since many hands spoil the pot as your mother used to say; you kids should really go out and do something."

The hunter had certainly found his soft spot in the past few years, having giving up the desire to chase the supernatural, Matthew Baker had settled on continuing to raise his kids, and watch their successes; he had become somewhat of a normal father and it was something his kids adored him for, even in their twenties.

"Wait, what?!" Dean almost yelled, jumping up from his seat at the table.

"You heard Mr. Baker, and I'm giving you boys an order," John replied, resuming the stoic state he was in when Gina had entered this screwed up affair. He waited for Dean to sit back down before he continued talking. "We're going to work on locating the colt, and you two, for as long as this is going to take, will work on trying to recoup because this past week seems to have taken a lot out of you. I want you two on you're A-game when we get into this fight, and if that means taking time off and getting your heads together you'll do it."

"But dad…" Sam started, but never got to finish.

"I already told you," John sighed. "That's an order Sam."

Both boys looked utterly defeated by John's orders, and Gina could tell how much all of this meant to them; all three of them. Dean sighed and stood up; walking over to where Gina was leaning against the counter and put his empty beer bottle down, casually draping an arm over her shoulders. The small gesture opened up a flood gate of emotions within the brunette, causing her to involuntarily lean into his touch.

"So, do we have a game plan?" Dean questioned.

"Oh, I always have a game plan." Zack replied, a mischievous smirk playing on his lips.

An hour later the foursome had dropped Zack's car off at his house and, upon his persistence, made their way to Gina's house. As we pulled into the driveway Gina could see Dean's eyes go wide in the back seat and Zack let go of the chuckle he seemed to be holding in. Sam had bent his head to get a better look at the beachfront property she had pulled the car up to, his eyes as wide as his brother's.

"This is your house?" Sam asked, wonder in his voice.

"This is my house." She confirmed with a smile, turning the car off and taking the key out of the ignition.

"You live right on the beach!" Sam exclaimed.

"This is nothing," Zack said. "Wait till you get inside and out back; there's some serious beach action back there!"

As soon as Gina had unlocked the front door Zack pushed past everyone and made a bee line for the kitchen to grab some beers and unlock the back door.

"Guys, go ahead and make yourselves comfortable; I just want to change out of my work clothes since we are in fact going out later." She said, heading in the opposite direction of everyone else and up the stairs.

Gina let the door to her bedroom close behind her and immediately walked towards the iPod dock on the nightstand. The sounds of Mumford and Sons filled the room as she sat on the bed and kicked off the shoes she had worn to work, her feet resting against the cool hardwood floor. She sat for a moment, her mind racing a mile a minute with possibilities of what all of what had happened back at her dad's could mean before standing and making my way to the closet. The brunette hastily dug through her wardrobe for a pair of distressed jeans and black top before walking back over to the bed. Just as she had began pulling her shirt over her head there was a knock at the door.

"What?!" She shouted, thinking it was Zack coming to ask if he could dip into the liquor cabinet for a little pre-bar action.

"Gina?"

The sound of Dean's voice on the other side of the door made her freeze, instantly pulling her half unbuttoned shirt back over her head as she mulled over the possibilities as to why he would be knocking on her door after she said she was coming up to change.

She quickly pushed any thoughts of the two of them together away for the moment, and moved to open the door, standing in front of him barefoot, and looking like she was a mess.

"Dean!" She smiled.

"I'm sorry?" He offered, the usually confident male looking sheepish standing in front of her.

"Sorry, for what?"

"For coming up here and bothering you," Was his simple reply. "I know you said you were getting changed but I really wanted to see you."

"No bother Dean, come in, it's fine." She smiled, moving out of the way so that he could walk farther into the room.

When he closed the door behind him it had finally dawned on her that they were alone, in the bedroom, something that hadn't happened in eight years time. A soft blush crept up Gina's cheeks as she thought back to their last night together as teenagers; the way he had held her, uncaring that if anyone in the house were to knock on her door they would surely catch Dean in bed with her.

"I really didn't mean to intrude on you like this…" He trailed off, after staying silent for a moment.

"You didn't intrude on me," She smiled. "I'm only getting changed, and if I remember correctly you've seen me in a more vulnerable state."

He smiled softly, moving farther into the room towards the bed.

"Why don't you sit down, I'll only be a minute."

Gina gestured to the bed, watching as he sat down almost obediently while she grabbed her clothes and made her way to the master bathroom. Once the door was shut she quickly rid herself of the work clothes from the day and changed into the distressed jeans and black wife beater tank top with a laughing skull covered in silver gems. She did her best to relax some of the frizz and knots in her long chestnut curls, flipping her hair and spraying in all the right places so that she didn't leave the house looking like Chewbacca. Just as she brought her hand up to apply a little more bronzer, the song playing in the bedroom changed, causing a shiver to run through her from head to toe as the first notes of Coldplay's 'Fix You' rang out. Trying her best to focus, Gina quickly ran the eyeliner over her lids, before dropping it back in her makeup bag and grabbing the first lipstick she could find, which happened to be her favorite red, something that Dean had loved on her as a teenager. Just as she put the cap back on the lipstick Dean's voice filled the room, mixing perfectly with the music.

"Do you remember that day we drove down to the pier in the Impala?"

"You mean the time you whisked me away from school and I skipped an entire day so that you could have your first Ferris wheel ride?" She replied, opening the bathroom door and stepping out into the room. "How could I forget; we were in so deep when we finally got home!"

Dean turned from his seat on the bed and green eyes met green eyes, the first time in eight years that they were seeing each other; really seeing each other.

"Wow…"

"Wow good, or wow bad?" Gina asked, tilting her head.

"Definitely good," He said standing from the bed. "More like amazing."

Again he had unknowingly caused the heat to rise in her cheeks. He took her hands in his just as the song changed and the room was filled with the sounds of Grace Potter and The Nocturnals 'Stars'.

"Dance with me?" He questioned; his voice just above a whisper.

Gina couldn't seem to find her voice, and instead found herself nodding against his chest as he pulled her into him, wrapping her in his strong arms and holding her the way he did all those years ago.

"Since when do you dance?" She asked in a whisper, looking up at him with a smile.

"I'll only dance with you." He replied, resting his head against the brunettes as they swayed with the music, wrapped tightly in each other's arms.

The feeling of contentment settled around them in the room, just being there while nothing else seemed to register; the fact that Sam and Zack were waiting downstairs or that there were eight years that were missing from this entire puzzle. For the moment it all just felt right; like it was supposed to be this way, both afraid to let go of it if even for a split second.

"I missed you so much Gina."

"I missed you too Dean," She replied, looking up at him. "It's hard to not miss you."  
"Do you think it was any easier being away from you?"

"You tell me," She whispered, burying her head in his chest and inhaling the scent of his cologne and the worn leather of his jacket. "It's been eight years."

He was silent for a few moments, still holding her, still dancing. His hand moved to her chin, gently tipping her face up so that he could look in her eyes. There was no denying he felt the shiver that coursed through her body when their eyes met; it was obnoxious, and she clung to his jacket as it moved through her veins.

"I never would have stayed away that long if I had it my way."

"I would have preferred you never left," She said, her voice shaking with the tears that were threatening to fall. "I never wanted any of this Dean; I never wanted to be left behind."

"I know that…"

"I'm not sure you do," She replied, harsher than intended. "I had to wait for my dad to tell me you were still alive Dean, I could never call you like a normal eighteen year old to see how you were; I had to wait for some cryptic message to hear that you had ganked another demon. My personal favorite was don't worry Gina; it's just a routine salt and burn. We never had a normal relationship Dean, and now that your dad is hell bent on finding this colt, what shot at normal do you and I really have?"

Her tears soaked through his black t-shirt, her hands gripping his arms for all she was worth, knuckles white, begging for him not to let go. Dean's hand moved up and down her back in a soft motion while the other stayed wrapped around her slender body, his own sense of security that he wasn't going anywhere; at least for the time being.

"I'm trying so hard to see the light at the end of this Gina, because I know that you're at the end of this crazy, fucked up road that we've been on for countless miles. I want that normal with you; with no one else, just you Gina! Remember what I told you on the Ferris wheel that day? That I couldn't see my life without you in it, and I meant that, I still do!"

"Then stay with me!" The tears falling from the woman's eyes were eerily reminiscent of the ones she cried the day the Impala pulled out of her driveway eight years ago.

"I need to finish this first…" He trailed off, tilting her head up once more, wiping the tears from her stained cheeks with the pad of his thumb.

His hands moved to hold her face, before he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to Gina's lips. The salt from their tears mixed with taste of each other's lips brought back the light in Gina's eyes, and the fire in her heart; a fire that burned for Dean Winchester.

"Wait for me?" He whispered, tears in his own eyes as he pulled away.

She couldn't respond, for fear of not being able to get the words out. Gina nodded, a smile tugging on her lips as she brought his face back down to hers, kissing him, and sealing their promise to each other. It was comforting to know that after all of the time that had passed, the years, the miles traveled, and the countless wondering; that there was still something to be said about your childhood sweetheart.

"We should probably be heading out…" Dean whispered, his arms still wrapped securely around his lover.  
"Yea," She nodded, her head moving against his chest where it had come to rest. "If we don't Zack is liable to just get drunk here; I don't want that to be my problem tonight."

The black car pulled into the parking lot, the line of people waiting to get in turning to see who the new arrival was.

As Gina exited the car she was followed by Zack, then Dean and Sam; a few heads turned, whispering and gasping as they noticed the two siblings. To anyone who was a SoCal local if you didn't know who the Baker's were you were probably living under a rock.

"Everyone's staring..." Sam whispered, leaning down to Gina's ear.

"Yea, it's whatever." She said, brushing it off. "They like to stare, but if they're not careful they're eyes might fall out."

Sam laughed; his eyes dancing with amusement as he heard a guy wonder out loud who the two lucky guys were that had come with the two siblings.

Gina was first to approach the bouncer, placing a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

"Hey Tal!"

"My god! She lives!" He grinned, giving her a hug before moving to greet Zack.

"Yeah yeah, you know how it is..." She chuckled.

"Yea, you keep the ladies of SoCal dressed in your finest threads girl!"

Dean's eyes widened a bit, realization dawning on him that Gina had in fact gone after her dream of becoming a fashion mogul.

Before he was able to process more, Tal was unhooking the rope that kept those waiting in line outside, and allowed the four of them to go inside.

Gina's hand wrapped around his, pulling him with her into the bar. Music poured from the speakers, surrounding his senses the moment he was over the threshold. It wasn't a large place, but you could tell that there was some kind of family that made up the regulars of the bar.  
"This is Johnny's, the best bar on the west coast!" Gina said, turning to face Dean as they settled at a booth in the back.

Dean nodded, sliding into the booth and without warning, pulling Gina down on his lap.

"This is nice..." She whispered, leaning back into his chest.

Sam sat across from the two lovebirds, a smile on his face as he watched his older, sometimes stone cold brother; engage in a normal night out.

A few moments later Zack joined them, with two girls on his arm.

"Look who I found!" He exclaimed in a singsong voice, one of his telltale signs that he was on his way to becoming drunk.

Gina's face lit up as she saw her best friend and brother's girlfriend Gena, and her surrogate little sister Harlow.

"Yay! You made it!" Gina exclaimed, reaching to take one of the beers that Zack and the girls had brought over.

"Well you did ask!" Harlow laughed, sitting down next to Sam.

Gina could see a small blush creep up Harlow's neck and into her cheeks as she sat next to Sam. Gina had a feeling that Harlow and Sam would hit it off, and was hoping that her two shy friends would find something to talk about, and not just sit and make eyes at each other all night.

"Are you setting my brother up?" Dean whispered, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Yes," Gina replied with mock seriousness as she sipped her beer. "And I hope it works, they would be great together!"

Gena and Zack had sat opposite Sam and Harlow, the six twenty something's taking up the entire round table.

"Guys, this is Dean and Sam Winchester;" Gina motioned to the two brothers, watching with a close eye as Sam and Harlow shook hands. "They're mine and Zack's oldest friends."

"And apparently you two go way back." Gena winked, motioning to Dean and Gina.  
Gina shook her head, laughing quietly while keeping a close eye on Harlow and Sam. It wasn't until Harlow smiled up at Sam while sipping her drink quietly that Sam made a move to break the tension between them.

"So how do you know Gina?" He asked.

"We go way back," she grinned. "I'm younger than she is, but was in the same grade as their brother Matt, and a school project at their house kind of...set the wheels in motion for our friendship."

Harlow chose her words carefully, not wanting to give too much of her past away to Sam, regardless of how handsome she found him.

"How about you?" She asked, leaning closer to him. "How do you know Gina and Zack?"

"Our dads are old friends." He said quickly.

"That must be interesting; their family is a real treat!" She laughed.

"You have no idea." Sam joined in laughing with her, finding himself enjoying the sound that came from the beautiful redhead.

As the night wore on, the Winchester brothers became more comfortable in their current surroundings. Dean had visibly relaxed, Gina now sitting beside him; both engaged in one of Zack's tour stories, Gina interjecting every so often when her brother over exaggerated, pointing her finger and reminding him he was a liar liar pants on fire.  
Harlow and Sam had become lost in their own world; both of them were facing each other and deep in conversation. Harlow had her hand resting casually on Sam's leg, laughing at something he had said. It wasn't until noise erupted from the rest of the party they had come with did they remember they were out in public.

"Hey, you wanna get out of here?" Harlow smiled, finishing the rest of her drink.

"Somewhere quiet?" Sam suggested.

"Yes definitely," Harlow turned, tapping Gina on the shoulder and waiting for a response.

"I have my car here Sam."

"What about your car?" Gina asked, turning around.

"Sam and I are gonna head out..." She trailed off, waiting for a response from her friend.  
Gina leaned in close to Harlow, wiggling her eyebrows before speaking.

"He likes you girl, Sam never does this!"

"We'll see," Harlow grinned, grabbing her keys. "I'll catch you tomorrow?"

"Harl, just go back to mine, you guys can go downstairs to the guest room that way when we come home we won't bother you."

"You sure?" The redhead questioned.

"Positive," Gina grinned. "I didn't put that apartment down there for nothing."

Harlow smiled, pulling Gina into a one armed hug before turning to Sam and extending her hand.

"Ready?" She smiled.

"Absolutely," Sam smiled. "We'll see you guys at home."

As the two exited the bar, Gina turned to Dean, smiling up at him proudly.  
"I did good!"

"You did babe," he kissed her forehead, still smiling. "You did real good."

Dean reveled in the fact that Gina had taken two of her friends and put them together in the hopes they would be happy with each other.

By the time Harlow and Sam had reached Gina's basement apartment both were more than eager to get inside and continue what they had started at the bar; among other things.

Harlow unlocked the door to the apartment she frequented and immediately noticed Sam's bags in the foyer.

"Are those yours?" The redhead questioned.

"Yea…I thought Gina told you Dean and I are staying with her for a bit."

"She did," Harlow mused; thinking of all the ways she wanted could kill Gina for trying to set her up. "She did, however, neglect to tell me that you were staying in the basement apartment that she so kindly offered me for the night."

"Oh…" Sam trailed off. "Well I'll share it with you for the night; I don't think either of us should be upstairs near her bedroom if she and my brother are planning on staying in there."

Harlow laughed, thinking of how sweet revenge on her brunette best friend would be if she barged in on her reunion with Dean. However, one look up at the caramel eyed boy in the room with her made her change her mind.

"Sam, I think it's safe to say you and I have been set up." Harlow grinned, moving to the kitchenette to grab two beers from the fridge.

"I don't think I've ever been set up before."

"It's a lot like this," she giggled, handing him a beer. "Gina tries to do it all the time, and I either politely decline or protest until I'm blue in the face."

"What made tonight different?" Sam asked, sinking into the leather couch, leaving the perfect space next to him for Harlow to fit under his arm.

"She told me that I wouldn't regret it." She smiled, sitting next to Sam and allowing herself to snuggle into that spot between the side of the couch and Sam's side.

"And do you?" He pressed, looking down at the redhead and into her crystal blue eyes.

"No." She replied simply, before allowing Sam to move his face down to hers and connect their lips.

The red head rolled over in bed, her back coming to rest against the broad chest of the man she had ended up sharing a room with the night before. She sighed, snuggling back into the warm comforter. Just as she felt herself dozing back off, a strong arm wrapped itself around her. She turned herself just enough to see Sam Winchester, in all of his sexy glory, snuggling with her in the spare bedroom of her best friend's house.  
Harlow couldn't deny that she had found Sam to be extremely attractive from the moment that Gina introduced them at the bar. The tall male had immediately captured her attention, and she enjoyed that he was interested in talking to her and not trying to find the shortest route from the bar to inside her pants.

"Hmmm..."

Harlow quickly turned back around, not sure if Sam was waking up or just stirring.

"I know you're awake Harlow." Sam chuckled lowly, the sleep still present in his voice.

"Uhm..."

"It's okay," he stretched, rolling onto his back and taking her with him, all while he kept an arm wrapped around her. "I don't mind."

Harlow didn't respond, but draped an arm around Sam's toned stomach, letting her head rest on his chest.

Harlow felt comfortable lying there with Sam. No pressure, nothing implied, just a comfort in knowing he was there. His long arms wrapped around her, while she traced nonsensical patterns up and down his chest with her manicured nails.

"Mmm..."

Harlow laughed a throaty laugh at Sam's reaction to her nails on his skin, taking pleasure in the fact that she was making him feel that way.

"That feels so good," Sam whispered. "Can you not stop ever?"

"Seriously?" Harlow asked.

"I'm very serious." He said.

"Well I'm sure we can work something out where I stick around." She smiled, turning her head up towards him.

"Good, because you just took the whole asking you out pressure off my shoulders." Sam smiled.

"In that case..." She trailed off.

"What?" He laughed, his head falling back into the plush pillows.

"I still want you to ask me." She smiled.

"Why?" Sam questioned. "Not that I won't, but I'm curious."

"Because I'm old fashioned like that." Harlow grinned, placing a small, feather light kiss to his jaw line before moving to his lips.

Upstairs, Dean and Gina spent their morning wrapped up in each other, the sheets of Gina's king size bed tangled between the two lost lovers. Their clothes from the night before decorated every inch of the bedroom and the room itself had been shaken quite a bit from their bodies moving and pressing against anything they could find before finally settling on the bed.

"Who would have thought…" Dean trailed off.

"What, that you'd get another chance to have me in bed?" Gina joked, looking up at the green eyed wonder that still held the key to her heart.

Dean laughed loudly, his head lolling to the side before he turned back to his green eyed lover. He placed a kiss on her forehead before moving to take her hand in his.

"Besides that," he smirked. "I'm talking me and you, it's like we haven't skipped a beat."

"We haven't Dean, that's what makes this so…" She tried to find the right words.

"So like us?" He finished for her, watching as she smiled and nodded her head.

As Gina was about to say something, the front door of the house could be heard swinging open and hitting the wall in the foyer.

Dean immediately shot up, reaching for the pistol that was now resting on the bedside table, when Gina shot her arm out and pushed him back onto the bed.

"Relax, it's just Zack." She laughed, watching as his expression turned from hunter, to confused, then finally to relaxed.

"Does he always do that?" He sighed, falling back into the mattress.

She nodded, chuckling lightly as she gently turning so that she could move from Dean's grasp.

"Where do you think you're going?" He teased.

"I need to feed the rat with the hangover that's probably scouring through my kitchen."

She sighed, moving from the bed to grab a pair of shorts. Her search for a shirt was quickly solved as she picked Dean's button down up off the floor and slipped it over her head, the shirt immediately covering the shorts she had put on.

"Is nothing sacred anymore?" Dean teased, tugging on the ends of his shirt.

"Admit it Winchester," She grinned. "I look hotter in it than you."

"I won't argue with that!" He grinned, sitting up against the headboard of the bed.

"C'mon, come downstairs and I'll make breakfast." She smiled.

Dean didn't need telling twice, he bounded from the bed, grabbing his jeans from the night before and the t-shirt he had worn under the shirt that Gina had claimed as her own.

Time had passed since the Winchester's return to California, and Dean and Gina had fallen into a comfortable pattern of living together. She would leave for work in the morning while Dean stayed in bed watching her get ready for her day, doing his best to coax her out of her pencil skirts and dresses each time.

Gina looked up from her desk as a knock sounded at her door. Figuring it was her secretary or a coworker she didn't bother with pleasantries.  
"Come in!"

"Is that how you talk to everyone around here?"

Gina's head snapped up at the sound of Dean's voice, a smile coming to rest on her purple stained lips.

Dean stood in the doorway of the office, a lazy smile on his face as he leaned against the door frame.

"Dean!"

Gina shot out of her chair, scrambling around the large oak desk as fast as she could in her heels; jumping into deans waiting arms.

"Hey baby..." He chuckled, holding her against him for fear she would fall over in her heels.

"You know, I only left the house a few hours ago," she laughed, stepping back to fix him with a look. "And I told you I'd be home for dinner..."

"But I missed you," he grinned. "Plus, Sam's brooding over this thing with Harlow; he's insufferable today."

"Why is he brooding?" She asked, moving to shut the door before turning back to her desk.

"He's afraid that if he gets too close to her then she's going to end up like Jess..."

"Harlow isn't going to die," she sighed, leaning back in her chair as Dean sat on the desk itself. "She's too well protected."

"I know." He agreed.

"Why is your ass on my sketches?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Because you never care where my ass is." He stated matter of factly.

"I do when it's on my sketches!" She laughed, shoving his arm gently.

Dean grinned, carefully pulling the paper out from under his jeans.

"Hey..." Gina trailed off, pulling him down to her by the shirt. "What happened to your eye?"

Dean turned away, trying to hide the bruise that had formed around his left eye.

"Dean..." She pried, turning his face towards her. "What is that?"

"It's nothing."

"It's something!" She said, standing to get a better look at it.

"I kind of...well...remember when I said Sam and I were going out for drinks last night?"

"Yea..."

"We never did..."

"Well I can see that now."

"We found a really simple lead and went out for a salt and burn; and well, big bad ghost kinda got me."

The brunette sighed, standing in front of him before wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Do me a favor, just tell me next time you find a lead, don't lie about it."

"You're not mad?" He asked astonished.

"No I'm not mad," she chuckled. "Besides, maybe I wanted to go with..."

Dean grinned, giving her a small kiss before pulling away.

"Fighting ghosts in your heels?"

"Don't underestimate me." She laughed, shoving him playfully.

The couple spent the rest of the day in Gina's office, Dean watching her work, only leaving when his stomach growling prompted him to go out and grab some food for the two of them. They currently sat at the small table in the office, away from the desk and phone; Dean inhaling a cheeseburger while Gina tried not to get salad dressing on her blouse.

"Your brother called before, apparently he doesn't think you have a real job and that you can stay home like the rest of us." Dean laughed, his mouth full of ground beef.

"He's an ass sometimes," The brunette laughed. "Just because I own the company doesn't mean I don't work."

"He said something about going out for drinks tonight, taking the edge off or something," Dean wondered. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine," Gina rolled her eyes, picking at the croutons in the salad. "The band is back in the studio and he's wigging out, he always does."

"Maybe we should go then."

"We can go if you want, nobody has to be anywhere tomorrow, it's only Saturday."

"You think Harlow would go if you told her Sam was going?"

"And you made fun of me for setting them up!" Gina laughed, pointing her fork at her boyfriend as he feigned innocence. "You're just as bad as I am!"

Gina knew that Sam was shy, it wasn't common knowledge that if you knew Sam Winchester he was the more shy of the two brothers. She also knew that Harlow was equally as shy. She had practically raised the girl through her high school years and taken her under her wing; Gina tried her hardest to get Harlow to open up; taking her out with her and her friends, going shopping with her, anything at all. The girl was stuck being shy, and then Gina introduced her to Sam. It was her proudest moment as Harlow's big sister, and she crossed her fingers praying that it would work out. She wanted her surrogate sister and future brother in law to be happy.

They had pulled up to Harlow's house in the Impala, after a night out with Zack and taking the edge off, and sleeping at Gina's Harlow had wanted to go home and shower before they ventured out again that night with the boys. The redhead had no choice, she knew Gina wouldn't stop until she was happy, and by happy she knew she meant making sure that Harlow was happy.

As Harlow climbed out of the back seat, she waved her goodbyes to her friends and started to walk up her front path.

"Sam!" Gina hissed. "Walk her to the door!"

Sam fumbled for a moment before getting out of the car and chasing Harlow up to her door.

"Or he can stalk her..." Dean chuckled.

"Harlow wait!" Sam called out.

Harlow turned, finding Sam not far behind her, and smiled.

"Hey..." He grinned, when he finally reached her.

"Hi." She smiled.

"I uhm, you know, I had a really good time with you last night..." He trailed off, looking down at his shoes.

"I did too," Harlow smiled. "I feel like I need a nap before tonight."

"Yea, I didn't think drinks with Zack would turn into such a hangover." He laughed.

"So you're coming out tonight then!"

"Of course I am."

The two stood awkwardly , staring at each other as they tried to figure out what to say next.

"So..."

Harlow giggled at Sam, she could tell he was nervous, and wanted to help him but didn't know what to say either; she was just as nervous as he was.

"Sam?"

He snapped out of his trance, looking at the redhead in front of him before making a single decision that would change his life.

"Oh the hell with it!" He exclaimed, before placing his hands on either side of Harlow's face and leaning down to kiss her.

The redhead responded immediately, placing her hands on Sam's chest and leaning into his kiss. The couple had become immediately wrapped up in each other, both completely forgetting that Dean and Gina were in the car watching them.

From the car, Gina immediately snapped her head up, smacking Dean's shoulder lightly when she saw that Sam had indeed fallen for Harlow.

"Oh my god, Dean look!"

He turned to look at his baby brother, instead getting a visual of him playing tonsil hockey with Harlow.

"That's my boy!" Dean exclaimed.

"So much for shy Sam Winchester, huh?"

"Yea well, he gets that from me." Dean boasted.

"Yea? You taught him how to kiss?" Gina taunted, looking back at the new couple and smiling while leaving Dean to stumble over his response.

Sam and Harlow finally pulled apart when they heard the roar of the engine from the Impala as it backed out of the driveway.

"Are they leaving?" Sam asked, watching as his brother drove away, one arm wrapped around Gina's shoulders as they sped off down the street.

"Looks that way." Harlow giggled. "Why don't you come in, we'll see about that nap I mentioned."

Sam smiled, wrapping his hand around Harlow's as she led him through the door and into the house. Once inside, she turned and pulled him back to her, her arms snaking around his neck as he lowered his head down to hers and covered her mouth with his lips.

"Sam..."

His lips moved down her jaw to her neck, Harlow threading her fingers through his hair.  
Sam quickly moved his hands to her thighs, picking her up and carrying Harlow up the stairs of her house.

"I say we skip the nap." Sam purred, his nose in her hair.

"I agree," Harlow whispered, gently nipping his earlobe. "But I still want you to take me to bed..."

Harlow was panting as Sam rolled off of her, his body coming to rest next to her as he pulled her into his side, his arm wrapping around her as she rested her head on his chest.

"Wow..." Harlow sighed, her head snuggling into the spot between Sam's neck and shoulder.

Sam let his fingers trail up and down the soft skin of Harlow's arm, his lips coming to find the top of her head.

"That was a hell of a nap." He chuckled.

"We should nap more often..."

"I won't say no." Sam smiled. "Hey, can I tell you something?"

"Yea, of course you can..." Harlow propped herself up on her elbow, her free arm draped over Sam's torso.

"I don't know if I'm gonna sound crazy, but, when I was a kid, my family was staying at Gina's house for a few weeks, and..."

"It is you..." Harlow whispered.

Sam looked at her, wonder and happiness flooding throughout him as he realized that Harlow remembered him the same way he remembered her.

"You were on the steps with Matt, and when I came outside you ran off. I never forgot you..."

"I can't believe you remembered me..." She trailed off. "I thought about you for weeks and weeks."

"The girl with the red hair was always a favorite memory of mine," Sam admitted. "And now, well, I'm hoping I can call you mine."

"You can." Harlow smiled, leaning up and capturing Sam's lips in a sweet kiss.

"How's that for old fashioned?" Sam questioned, remembering what she had said to him the morning after they had shared the bed in Gina's guest room.

"I'd say I'm blown away." Harlow smiled, pulling him back down to her.

The phone rang, Harlow and Sam both stirring from their peaceful sleep as the sound reverberated through the room.

"Hmm, just let it ring..." Harlow groaned, snuggling back into Sam's arms.

"I can't, it could be Dean..." Sam sighed.

"He's with Gina, don't worry." She whispered.

Sam nodded, letting the phones ring die out as he put his head back down on the pillow, eyes closed ready to drift back to sleep. Just as he was about to drift off the phone rang again, this time it was Harlow's.

"It has to be Gina and your brother, only they would think to bother us." She groaned, sitting up and reaching over to the bedside table for her cell before answering it and putting it on speaker.

"Hello?"

"Harlow where are you?" Gina's voice sounded from the other end.

Harlow could hear music playing in the background, and a few people talking.

"I was sleeping," She replied. "Why?"

"Harlow you were supposed to be at my house an hour ago! We have plans tonight!" Gina laughed.

"Oh crap, we must have lost track of time..." She trailed off.

"So that's where my brother is!" Dean yelled playfully in the background.

"Well, we're gonna leave in an hour and make our way to Slidebar, can we count you guys in?"

"You know what," Harlow grinned, looking over at Sam. "You guys go, we're gonna hang out here tonight."

Gina was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"We'll have a few drinks for you. And remember Harl, don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

Harlow could tell Gina was smiling as the words passed through the receiver.

"G, that doesn't leave much..." The redhead laughed.

"That's my point! Have fun!"

And the line went dead.

Harlow turned to Sam, a wicked grin on her lips as he raised an eyebrow at his girlfriend.  
"You heard what she said..."

"Yea, although I'm not all that sure what Gina meant."

"It means we have room to play..." Harlow purred, moving so that she could wrap her arms around Sam and pull him back down onto the mattress with her.

The serenity of the backyard was something out of a movie as Gina sat on the rocking couch clutching her coffee in her hands, her body slowly fighting off the excess sleep feeling. Outside alone for the moment while Dean had gone off in search of breakfast, or brunch depending on the time. He wanted bagels, insisting that the brunette stay and relax while he went and picked some up.

She turned as the back door slid open and figuring Dean had come back from his search for bagels she was surprised to see Sam standing in the doorway.

"Hey Gina..."

The tall male was wiping the sleep from his eyes, a pair of gym shorts hanging loosely from his hips and the t-shirt from last night wrinkled from sleeping.

"Hey Sammy," She smiled, making room on the rocking couch for him. "You're back kind of early, did you have a good night?"

The taller male laughed, knowing that she knew full well that him and Harlow didn't do much sleeping the night before.

"Yea, it was great…" He smiled, and she could see in his eyes that his mind was on the redhead he had spent the night with.

"Good I'm glad."

He sat quietly for awhile, watching the waves crash along the shore while the sun rose higher and higher into the California sky.

"Can I ask you something?" Sam finally spoke up.

"Of course you can..." Gina replied, taken back a little by the sudden sound of concern in his voice. "Sam we've known each other forever, what is it?"

"We'll...I can't ask Dean because he'll tell me I'm stupid for considering this," he started, letting his hands rest in his lap. "But what would you do about this relationship I'm getting into with Harlow?"

"Well first, you need to tell me what's really going on."

Sam looked at the brunette for a moment, confusion written all over his face.

"Don't make that face Sam, I know you better than you think I do." She scolded him in a playful big sister kind of way.

"You know more than I think you know, don't you." He sighed.

"Of course I do..."

"What did Dean tell you?"

"Dean didn't tell me anything," She smiled. "My dad told me."

He nodded, taking a deep breath and looking up at, for all intents and purposes, his big sister.

"What happened at Stanford Sam?"

"Yellow Eyes that got my mom...he got my girlfriend Jess."

Gina slowly felt her heart break for him, knowing how hell bent he was on finding the man with the yellow eyes, he now had an additional reason to catch the creep that tore his family apart.

"Oh Sammy..."

"And, I want to kill this thing, so bad, to avenge my mom, and Jess..." He trailed off. "And I didn't think I would ever feel anything like what I felt with Jess, but then you brought Harlow out the other night and..."

"You can feel again..."

"Yea. Exactly." He grinned.

"Well, then you need to be honest with her," Gina reasoned. "Somehow I think Harlow will understand."

"How can you be so sure? I mean, I just asked her to be my girlfriend, and then to immediately dump on her that I'm a hunter, and not the kind of hunter that kills a bear and slaps its head on the wall either. I'm the one that cheats death, digs up graves and burns bones; I exorcise demons and shoot a gun loaded with homemade rock salt bullets. I know old lore and mythology; I know what's really out there Gina."

"Yea, you do; and lying to her won't make this any easier on either of you Sam. For once, don't listen to Dean and listen to what I'm telling you. I'll deal with Dean if he gets cranky about it, just be honest with Harlow."

Sam nodded, before pulling Gina into a one armed hug, surprising her by his actions. What surprised him though, was when she put her coffee cup down and hugged him back. She was his big sister; his brother's girl, and somehow she had always had this maternal instinct that made Sam feel at ease.

"I'll go talk to her…"

"Not now." Gina replied.

"Well, I know not now," Sam laughed. "But even if I wanted to go now…"

"You can't; you reek of sex and beer, I don't even want to know what you two did last night." The brunette laughed, giving Sam a gentle punch in the shoulder, just as the back door opened and Dean emerged.

Sam stood on Harlow's doorstep, hand raised ready to ring the bell. He had knocked twice, but there was no response. He knew Harlow was home; her white Audi was parked in the driveway. Without a second to think he pressed his finger to the doorbell hearing it ring out inside the redhead's home.

Seconds later he heard footsteps moving towards the front door, and when it swung back, he came face to face with a bikini clad Harlow.

"Sam!" She reacted with a large smile, the surprise apparent on her face. "Come in!"

Sam smiled, reaching for her as soon as she had shut the door. His arm instinctively snaked around her waist, pulling her into him before leaning down and letting his lips connect with hers.

Harlow pulled away from the kiss with a smile of mixed emotion on her face.

"Did you come all the way here just to kiss me?" She questioned, teasing him lightly.

"No...Yes..Both..." Sam trailed off.

"We'll, what is it?" She asked.

"Can we sit down and chat?" He asked, looking into her blue orbs.

Harlow nodded, taking his hand and leading him through the house, past the everyday amenities, and out to her back yard.

When she opened the door they were met with the sounds of Boys Like Girls playing from the stereo. There was a cocktail on the table and a lounge chair positioned perfectly in the sun.

"Sit down; I'll grab you a beer and we can chat." She smiled.

Sam nodded, sitting in one of the chairs in the shade, listening quietly to the music that was playing.

Harlow returned moments later with two beers, handing one to Sam before sitting across from him.

"So what's up?" She asked, crossing her legs and leaning back in her chair.

"I need you to know, all of what I'm about to tell you..." He trailed off. "It's all the honest truth and I want you to know exactly who I am because I don't want to be dishonest with you."

Harlow nodded, urging him to continue with what he was about to say.

"I talked to Gina this morning, and she was the one who set me straight, because my brother can be stubborn sometimes. But, my family, were...different...very different than most families."

"How so?" She asked, sipping her beer.

"We're hunters."

Harlow raised an eyebrow, looking at him like he had ten heads.

"Sam, I'm not sure you're aware of this, but, plenty of people hunt deer and crap."  
Sam sighed, sipping his beer.

"We hunt...well; the things that go bump in the night." He said directly.

Harlow's eyes went wide, her body visibly tensing up at what he had just said.  
"Sam..."

"Ghosts and stuff. The paranormal, the out of this world, supernatural that you only read about in novels or see in movies." He finished.

"Well, if we're being honest, there's something I need to tell you too." She said, sighing as she sat back in her chair again.

"What is it?" Sam asked, his mind going a million miles an hour as to why Harlow hasn't freaked out, yet moved right on in the conversation.

"When I was a kid, my dad was always very edgy, and not like cool kid edgy, I mean very on edge about everything. The smallest thing could set him off. When I was a teenager, I came home from school one day and he was in the kitchen, stabbing my mother to death with one of the carving knives; and his eyes were pitch black..."

Sam stiffened, knowing exactly where she was going with the rest of her story.

"He killed my mom, or rather, it killed my mom. My dad would never go as far as to kill anyone, even if I may have wished it at some points when he was smacking me around. But he did, he had literally butchered my mom's body before turning on me with the same knife."

"Harlow..."

"I found a small gun lying on the floor, and before he could get too close to me I shot him. I shot and killed my father Sam; but it wasn't my father. All this black smoke flew out of his mouth and he just hit the ground, dead. I had zero emotion for the fact that he was dead Sam, but all the smoke, the fact that I was holding a gun, that's what got me; so I ran to Gina's place because Matt and them were more family to me than my own. That's what Matthew senior taught me about demons and hunting."

"So you know what Dean and I do..." He trailed off in a whisper.

"I had a hunch that you weren't a mechanic." She chuckled, moving to sit in his lap.

Sam wound his arms around her waist, holding her close to him and kissing her temple.  
"I promise I'm going to protect you."

"I know you are Sam, I never doubted that." She smiled.

In that moment, all was right in the world for the Winchester's. There was nothing out there that could harm innocent people, no monsters, demons, or other worldly creatures. It was just them; Sam and Harlow and Dean and Gina; the way that they wished it could be forever, but nothing was ever that simple when you were a Winchester.

The weeks had flown by, and it eerily reminded Sam and Dean of the last time they were in Southern California. One minute they were happy and then suddenly their dad was telling them to get in the car because they were burning good daylight. John and Matthew had made progress with locating The Colt, and when John Winchester said jump, you didn't think twice, you jumped.

Dean and Gina moved around her bedroom with ease as they prepared to meet Sam and Harlow and Zack and Gena for dinner before the boys departed in two days. Dean was tense, and it was setting Gina on edge the more he mumbled things about not wanting to leave the brunette behind again and even more so that it didn't bother her. Gina knew the consequences of dating a hunter, she knew the life that Dean and his family led; but she also loved him unconditionally and would deal with the side effects if it meant she could call him hers.

"Would you stop mumbling for Christ sake?" She finally snapped, turning from the closet where she was looking for shoes.

"I can't put you through this again!" He shouted, finally feeling exasperated with all of her reasons why it didn't bother her.

"You're not putting me through anything Dean!" She yelled back, throwing her arms up in the air. "I'm choosing this!"

"Choosing to wait for me then?"

"Yes!"

"Why?" He screamed back, their argument not losing any heat.

"Because Dean," she shouted, running a hand roughly through her hair. "I don't understand you!"

"Give me a solid reason why you think waiting for me while I'm out there hunting things that could kill me is a good idea." He deadpanned, watching as she moved closer to him.

"Because I love you!" She shouted, grabbing the collar of his shirt and pulling him close to her, shocking Dean by her strength. "I've been in love with you since the minute you paid that guy at the Ferris wheel extra to keep us up at the top longer so you could spill your heart to me! And if any of that's not a good enough reason for you, then you're more stubborn than I thought."

"You love me…" Dean whispered.

"I love you..." She trailed off, looking up into his green eyes, her own eyes softening as the anger from moments ago subsided.

"I love you too," Dean smiled, leaning down and softly brushing his lips against hers.  
Gina's grip on deans shirt loosened, her hands falling to rest on his chest as she leaned into the kiss.

"Don't ask me to wait for you if you're going to fight me on it." She smirked, repeating his words from the first night he had come back.

"Okay," He grinned, letting his hands rest on the small of her back while he held her. "I won't fight you."

"Good, because I don't like fighting with you."

The end of their stay with the Baker family had come quicker than anyone thought; the couples dreading the day they would have to say goodbye to each other. Sam was currently spending the night at Harlow's house, wanting all the time with her that he could get, unsure of when he would see the beautiful redhead again. Dean climbed the stairs of the house quietly; knowing he would be leaving tomorrow had certainly run a multitude of emotions through his head. They had a strong lead on the colt, but at what price was he getting all of it? He would be leaving behind the one woman who never stopped believing in him or loving him all those years ago. He was torn, to say the very least.

He opened the door, peering around it to see Gina sitting on the bed shuffling through what looked like work stuff.

"Hey..." He said quietly, closing the door behind him and walking over to her.

She looked up and smiled back at him, running a hand through her hair.

"Hey you..."

"Whatcha doing?" He questioned, sitting next to her, careful not to disrupt the papers in front of her.

"Just going through some final sketches for work, you know me," she smiled. "I only put my best designs on the rack."

Dean chuckled, putting an arm around her and pulling her into his side, placing a gentle kiss on top of her head.

"You ready for all of this?" Gina asked suddenly.

"If by all of this you mean leaving you here, then no." Dean sighed.

Gina turned so her face was pressed into his chest, moving her free hand to lace her fingers with Deans.

"You know," She started, pulling her other arm free of his grasp, and moving to sit in his lap so she was facing him. "I'm always right here..."

Gina's right hand came up to Dean's chest, resting gently over his heart.

"Always?" Dean mused, giving her a crooked grin.

"Always baby..."

Dean leaned in and pressed his lips gently to Gina's, his hands on her waist as she sat contentedly in his lap. It always amazed him how he was such a tough guy, with a take no shit attitude, but when it came to the brunette in his lap he became a pile of mush.  
Gina's arms wound around his neck, her manicured fingers carding through the short hair at the nape of his neck. She sighed, a sound filled with a mixture of pleasure, happiness and a hint of sadness. Dean felt solely responsible for bringing sadness upon her, no matter how many times she uttered the phrase 'I understand.'

"Hmmm..." Gina sighed; dragging her nails down Dean's back, letting her fingers play with the hem on his shirt.

Dean moved from her lips to her neck, allowing his lips to find that special spot; the one that opened Gina like a custom made key for a lock that belonged to Dean, and Dean alone.

"Dean..." She moaned in his ear.

He removed his lips for a moment, bringing his eyes to meet Gina's; a lazy smile on her lips as she ran a hand through his hair.

"Just be with me tonight..." She whispered. "I don't want to think about anything else, just you."

Dean nodded, gripping her hips tighter and moving them so that she was lying on the plush comforter of the bed and he was on top of her. Gina grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him down to her, taking his bottom lip between her teeth and nipping at it gently, while her free hand came to rest on his bicep. Dean slid his hands down to rest on Gina's waist, playing with the hem of her tank top before letting his hand slip underneath it and coast across her stomach. She moaned at the contact of his skin against hers, aching for more. As she arched her back into his touch, pressing her chest against his, Dean took the opportunity to lift her top over her head, ridding Gina of the offending garment.

As soon as Dean saw her exposed skin, he let his lips move over everywhere he could. He moved across her collar bone, biting and sucking the tender flesh, reveling in the light moans he was eliciting from her. He moved across her shoulder, gently sliding her bra strap down so that he could kiss and nip there as well. When his other hand pushed the other strap down she arched up, allowing him the moment he needed to skillfully pop the clasp on the purple silk garment and free her from its confines.

Gina raked her nails down Dean's arms, her nails leaving light red marks on his skin that would brand him as her own. He belonged to the brunette pinned under him, and he knew in his heart of hearts, no matter how stone cold he was sometimes, that he wouldn't have it any other way.

She couldn't bring herself to break away from him. Her arms were wound tightly around his neck, her face buried in the cook of his shoulder. As the tears flowed down her cheeks the familiar salty taste that accompanied them hit her lips; mixed with the strong scent of worn leather that radiated off deans jacket.

Gina cried her heart out, not caring that Zack, her dad and John Winchester were standing a few feet away from them on her father's front porch. On the other side of the car, Sam was holding Harlow in his arms, trying his best to make their last few minutes together worthwhile, but Gina could tell that the redhead was crying just the same way she was.  
Sam continued to run his fingers through Harlow's long red locks, his other hand rubbing small circles on her back as she clung to him for all she was worth. She knew that he would eventually have to leave, that he would be back on the road with his family, and she knew it would be hard to let her boyfriend go, but she never imagined it to be this painful.

"Baby..." Dean's voice sounded softly in Gina's ear.

Her tears fell harder at the sound of his voice.

"I don't want to let go..." She whispered. "It isn't fair."

"Not many things in life are..."

"Promise me you'll come back..." Gina choked out, feeling Dean tighten his hold on her the moment the words fell from her lips.  
"With everything I can possibly promise you, I'll come back."  
"And not eight years from now either!" She sniffed.

"No, I won't do that again."

She felt Dean press his lips to her forehead, and then heard a quiet sob come from the most inner part of him. A sound so foreign, that if Gina hadn't heard it last night while in bed, she wouldn't believe it herself.

"Dean..."

He nodded quietly, a silent answer to her question.

"Dean! C'mon son, we got to hit the road!"

Gina felt her heart break at John's harsh tone, but slowly pulled away from Deans embrace.

"I promise you, I'll be home soon."

"You better..." She cracked a small smile through her mascara stained cheeks, wiping furiously at the MAC product that was dripping from her eyes.

Dean nodded, leaning on the hood of the car, looking back at the one person that held the lock and key to the heart he thought was too tough to be loved.

She stood on the steps of her house, her arm wrapped around Harlow, who in turn had her arm wrapped around her best friend. No one could know the pain that the two girls felt in that very moment. Gina's hand was absentmindedly playing with the small charms on the necklace Dean had surprised her with the night before, a gesture that she may have filed as 'too cheesy' for Dean Winchester.

"Gina!" He called out, turning back to her. "I love you!"

Gina's smile widened, knowing full well he meant those three small words.  
"I love you too!"

"Sammy!" Harlow called out, wanting to tell him exactly how she felt before he was on the road.

Sam turned, surprised when Harlow ran down the steps and back into his arms, kissing him fiercely.

"I love you…" She whispered, her hand coming to rest on his cheek.

"I love you too, Harlow." Sam grinned, kissing her a final time before slipping into the passenger seat of the Impala.

The girls watched as the car drove down the street, following John Winchester's pickup truck; both praying that they found this colt sooner rather than later, and brought the end of yellow eyes.

"So, now what do we do?" Harlow asked, turning to Gina as they walked back to the redhead's car to go home. Gina climbed in the front seat of Harlow's white Audi, settling into her seat as the redhead waved to Zack and Matthew before pulling out of the driveway.

"Now, we go home and we wait." Gina responded, using the mirror in the visor to fix her makeup.

"That's it? We wait?"

"I'm afraid waiting kind of comes with the territory when you're dating a Winchester, Harl'..." Gina trailed off, turning to her friend.

"Then I hope they gank that demon real soon, I don't like waiting..."

**To Be Continued…**


	3. Lost To Lust

**Lost To Lust**

"So, I guess this is 'Goodnight'…." Sam said as he stood facing Harlow on the front porch of her home. Their attempt at a 'normal' date had been cut short by Dean calling Sam's phone and insisting that he returned to the Baker household to meet with him, their father and Mr. Baker.

"Yeah, I guess…." Harlow looked up at Sam, a little sad that he had to go and wishing that their night didn't have to end so soon. The Winchesters were only back in So Cal for the weekend while John regrouped with Matthew Baker, his ally in the hunt for the Colt, and she found it unfair that Dean had took it upon himself to snatch Sam away from her when she had only just got him back after what had been one of the longest months of her life so far.

"I'm sorry that we had to leave the movie early, Harl'…" Sam apologized for what must have been the umpteenth time since they had left the cinema complex.

"Sam, it's okay, I understand…" Harlow insisted, noticing her date frown and moving to take hold of his hand. "I do…"

Sam glanced down at their entwined hands; "I wish that I didn't have to go. I mean I haven't seen you in, like, a month…"

He looked up to see Harlow staring at him, the same sadness he was feeling echoed in her blue eyes and let out a breath as he pulled her to him in a hug; "Dean's an ass for calling me…"

"I assumed that he'd be too busy with Gina to bother you with hunting stuff tonight," Harlow said, her hands finding the plaid fabric of Sam's shirt and smoothing it out as she looked up at him.

"Are you kidding?!" Sam scoffed, smiling down at the redhead in his arms. "Dad says jump, Dean asks how high. It's the way it's always been with them…"

"So he'd leave Gina in the middle of a date to go and do what your Dad asked?" Harlow asked, her hands resting against Sam's chest.

"Yeah, probably, or at least take her with him," Sam nodded, smoothing back her hair with one hand while the other snaked its way around her slender waist. "I mean, we are staying at her Dad's place after all…"

"I thought you guys would be staying with Gina like last time…" Harlow wondered out loud, fingering the buttons on his shirt as she stared into his eyes.

"Yeah, I thought so too…" Sam smiled down at her. "That guest room of hers holds some pretty good memories for me…" He moved his other hand to her waist, allowing it to slide down her arm slowly as he maintained eye contact with her, getting lost in her icy blue pools.

"Me too," Harlow grinned. "So, I guess you should be going now, huh?" She asked, watching as Sam nodded but neither one of them made an attempt to move away from the other.

"I should…"

"And I'll see you tomorrow…" Harlow's gaze fell to Sam's lips as thoughts of what it would be like to have them touching certain parts of her body flooded into her mind. It had been so long since she'd been with him like that but she hadn't realized until that very moment just how much she missed it.

"Count on it…" Sam promised, inching closer to the redhead he was supposed to be walking away from.

"Good…" Harlow smiled, her heart racing and her breath quickening due to how close Sam was standing to her now. She could feel his breath on her lips as his fingers skimmed the exposed patch of skin between the hem of her t-shirt and the waistband of her jeans and as she watched Sam lower his head to bring his lips down on hers she knew that there was no way he was leaving her alone tonight.

They stumbled through the front door, locked in each other's arms as they kissed furiously. Harlow was vaguely aware of her room mate, Roman, complaining about the disturbance she was creating in the hallway before Sam swept her up in his strong arms and carried her to her bedroom, bounding up the stairs two at a time. He placed her back down on solid ground when they reached her door, Harlow turning the handle and quickly leading him inside.

"So, five minutes longer won't hurt…" Sam murmured before his lips were against Harlow's once more.

He booted the door shut, moving towards the bed as the redhead in his arms wrapped herself around his strong frame and deepened their kiss, making her intentions known and they were intentions he shared. With a great effort on his part, he pulled back from her embrace to look into her eyes and share a smile with her before he brought his lips crashing down onto hers and they fell back onto the soft mattress of the bed, all thoughts about his family waiting for him and the latest hunt he was on forgotten about… at least for a little while.

Sam awoke hours later to the sound of voices in the hallway, children's voices and although he was contented and comfortable lying there tangled up in Harlow, the hunter inside of him was intrigued by the noise because it was common knowledge that no children lived or ever visited Harlow's home. It was only her and her room-mate, Roman, who lived at the property and he wasn't exactly the paternal type. He was more of the partying type. The voices sounded again, a young girl crying out and Sam slowly pulled his arm out from beneath a sleeping Harlow, rolling over to get out of the bed. He grabbed his jeans, pulling them up his legs and glancing over his shoulder at the redhead wrapped up in the sheets behind him before rising to his feet and creeping out of the bedroom.

The hallway was empty; the only sign of life coming from down stairs were the light coming from the TV cast eerie shadows on the walls. Sam heard Roman chuckle at whatever the bartender was watching at such a late hour and figured that it had just been the actor's on the show he had heard and not actual children's voices. He cursed his father's Military-like training in demon-hunting for making him overly-cautious and was just about to head back and join Harlow back in bed when he heard a young girl cry out again. His head snapped towards the bathroom, certain that the sound had come from within there and he carefully made his way along the hallway with the stealth of a true solider, intent on investigating.

The young hunter pushed open the door to the bathroom, standing warily in the doorway before reaching out a hand and flicking on the light. The small room illuminated instantly, the white tiles dazzling under the fluorescent light and Sam glanced around, searching for the youngster that had made the noises but he found nothing. He walked further into the room, his hazel green eyes inspecting every nook and cranny for anything out of the ordinary but there was nothing. No spooky handprint or message on the mirror, no ectoplasm oozing out of the walls, nothing. The only thing he discovered was a slow drip of water coming from the silver faucet over the bathtub which he smoothly turned to the off position before turning to walk back out into the hallway. Casting another glance over his shoulder just to double check he hadn't missed something, Sam shook his head and switched off the light before pulling the door closed and heading back along the hallway towards Harlow's bedroom.

When he entered the redhead's room, he found her awake and sitting upright on the bed with the sheets wrapped around her slender frame and a worried look on her face.

"Hey…" Sam practically whispered, closing the door and walking over to join Harlow on the bed as she looked at him.

"Where did you go?"

"Oh, I just…" Sam trailed off, unsure if Harlow was aware of the potential spirit that inhabited her home. He let out a breath, sitting down on the edge of the bed and reaching out to pull Harlow towards his chest, deciding that it was better to just leave the ghost talk until the morning. He didn't want to freak her out if it was something she wasn't already aware of. Kissing her forehead and rubbing his hand against her back, he continued; "I needed the bathroom, that's all…"

Harlow craned her neck to look up at him, her hand falling to rest on his denim clad thigh; "You needed to put on your jeans to go to the bathroom?"

"Yeah, well I didn't exactly want to risk bumping into Roman…"

Harlow grinned teasingly, her hand sliding up from its resting place and towards the buttons of his jeans; "What? Are you scared that he might try it on with you?"

Sam smirked, watching Harlow's expert fingers as they started to undo his buttons; "Right now I'm more interested in what you're going to do…"

Their gazes met for a brief second, the air surrounding them thick with desire and it wasn't long before Harlow had shifted her position so that she now sat astride Sam, her arms wrapped around his neck and her naked body pressed firmly against his as they kissed.

"Do you have to go now?" Harlow asked, breaking the kiss to look at Sam.

"Depends what you've got in mind…"

"I was thinking that maybe we could go for round two…" She purred seductively and Sam grinned, tugging at her bottom lip with his teeth.

"Then I think I could stay for a little longer," He breathed, crashing his mouth against hers before they fell back against the mattress for the second time that night.

The following day, Sam and Harlow sat huddled up together on one of the sofa's in Gina's home as Dean filled Sam in on what he'd missed the night before. Sam had his arm wrapped around the redhead's shoulders, his hand holding hers as she traced nonsensical patterns on top of it with her free hand.

"So Dad and Matthew have gone off after another lead on the colt, they want us to kick back and chill here for the next day or two," Dean explained, looking at his little brother who nodded his head.

"Okay," Sam replied, trying his best to remain focused on the conversation with his brother and the brunette beside him but it was hard when Harlow's fingernails scraping against his skin were reminding him of the things they had done once they had returned to Harlow's home after their date. He wanted nothing more than to escape with the redhead curled into his side and make her say his name the way she had said it last night both before and after his little paranormal investigation and then again this morning when they had shared a shower. He just couldn't seem to get enough of her lately.

Harlow glanced at him as if sensing what he was thinking about and Sam caught her gaze, the young couple sharing a smile as Gina relaxed into her seat beside Dean and smirked, knowing that her match-making scheme had clearly been a success.

"Okay? That's it? Last time Dad told us we had to stay behind you kicked up Hell and now you're just all laid-back about it all of a sudden?" Dean questioned, staring at Sam in disbelief.

Gina reached out a perfectly manicured hand and placed it on his back, rubbing it soothingly; "Dean, take a pill, you guys deserve to have a break once in a while but if it makes you feel better we'll try and find some information while you guys are stuck here…"

Dean glanced back at her, offering her a small smile of gratitude for her reassuring words as Sam cleared his throat and squeezed Harlow's hand as he looked at her.

"We should, uh, probably go do a quick search of the Web for any possible leads…" He suggested, Harlow looking back at him knowingly.

"Uh, yeah…At my place," She nodded. "Since you left your laptop there…."

Dean glanced over at his little brother, Gina's hand still resting on his back; "You left your laptop at Harlow's? You never leave your laptop, Sammy…"

Sam shrugged his shoulders, the sensation of Harlow's fingers stroking his hand making it almost unbearable for him to hold it together any longer; "I had a lot on my mind…"

Dean caught the way his sibling glanced at the pretty girl beside him and smirked; "I can see that…"

"You guys go, we'll make a couple of calls here, see if anybody knows anything and by anybody I mean Bobby…" Gina grinned across at her friends who certainly didn't need telling twice.

The couple scrambled to their feet before the brunette could retract her offer and grabbed their jackets off the back of the sofa, Dean watching them with an amused curiosity. He'd never seen his baby brother so keen to be alone with a girl, he had to admit that going along with Gina's plot to get Sam and Harlow together had been one of his best decisions yet but that didn't mean that he was prepared to let the couple leave without having a little fun with them first.

"Hey, you know, G' has an Internet connection here and a laptop that works just as well as yours does, Sammy…" The eldest of the Winchester brothers claimed as he rose to his feet, Sam looking back at him with panic stricken eyes as he shrugged on his jacket.

"Uh, no, you know how I like to work on my own machine, Dean…" He said, Dean suppressing a laugh as he watched him squirm.

Gina stood up; bringing her hand up to connect with the back of Dean's head and making him look back at her questioningly. She gave him a look that told him to stop playing the jerk and smiled over at Sam and Harlow who were looking even more eager to leave than before.

"Ignore him, Sammy; your brother's messing with you…" The brunette said, pulling a face at Dean when he scowled at her. "My laptop is nowhere near as good as yours. You guys go back to Harlow's, let us know if you find anything…"

"We will…" Sam nodded, Harlow grabbing his hand and tugging him towards the hallway so that they could finally leave.

"Yeah, we'll call you…" The redhead called back to her friend, leaving the lounge with Sam in tow.

Dean watched them go for a moment before looking back at his girlfriend; "Did you have to hit me?"

"You loved it and you know it," Gina smirked up at him as he stepped towards her and pulled her into his arms. "Besides, you shouldn't tease him… Don't you remember what it was like to be young and in love?"

Dean smirked at her, bringing his lips down to brush against hers as she looped her arms around his neck; "I guess I'm getting old. Maybe you should remind me what it feels like…"

"With pleasure," Gina grinned just moments before their lips met in a kiss that signified the start of their afternoon alone together.

"Jeez, it's freezing in here! What the Hell is wrong with the heating?!" Roman complained upon leaving his bedroom with his latest boy toy, Federico who hardly spoke a word of English but was easy on the eye and that was all that really mattered to him. He glanced at the tall dark Latino boy following him and rolled his eyes when he just smiled back at him. "Honestly, sometimes I wonder why I bother with you…" He groaned, running his fingers through his short blond hair.

They headed down the hall, Roman wrapping his arms around himself in a bid to block out the bitter cold that had suddenly invaded his home and stopping outside of Harlow's bedroom when he heard the grunting and groaning coming from behind the closed door. He smirked back at Federico, gesturing towards the door and the Latino nodded his head knowingly. Raising his fist, Roman banged it against the wood and laughed.

"Damn girl, you're going to break him if you keep riding him so much!" He called into his room-mate but when he failed to get any kind of response out of her he moved away, taking his date by the arm and leading him down the stairs to take a look at the thermostat. He had friends coming by later on for a pre-birthday celebration and he needed the house to be warm for when they arrived otherwise he had no chance of getting any of them to strip which was something he was eager to see the Winchester brothers do, especially the one Harlow had been wrapped up in lately. It wasn't fair that she was the one who was getting to have all the fun with him.

Once Roman and Federico reached the bottom of the stairs, Roman checked the thermostat displayed on the hallway wall and furrowed his brow when he realized that it was showing a perfectly acceptable temperature but the radiator underneath it was cool to the touch.

"That's just not possible," He sighed in confusion. "If this is working then the heating should be too…" He tapped the small plastic casing of the thermostat and glanced at Federico. "Guess we'll just have to figure out how to heat this place up before our guests arrive, Rico…"

Federico smiled at him, stepping towards him and curling a tanned and muscular arm around his waist; "We make with the sex, yes?"

Roman rolled his eyes and pushed the Latino away; "Maybe later honey, I have a party to plan right now and my girl up there is having enough sex for the both of us…"

Behind her locked bedroom door, Harlow broke apart at the seams, crumbling beneath Sam as his name spilled past her lips the way he loved to hear her say it. Moments later, Sam joined her in her flight of ecstasy, collapsing against her and nuzzling at her neck as his orgasm shook his entire body.

"Well, if that's how you do research, we should research together more often…" Harlow breathed against his ear, her hands roaming across his back and Sam looked up to smile at her.

"I'm more than up for that…" He replied, Harlow giggling at his comment before pulling him down to her for a kiss.

"I was hoping you'd say that…" She whispered, taking Sam by surprise and pushing him down onto the mattress, switching their position so that now she was the one on top. She ground her hips into his as he held onto her waist, placing her hands against his smooth toned chest for leverage.

"Again?" Sam asked, Harlow nodding as she ground her hips into his again prying a guttural moan out of him and he dug his fingers into the curve of her waist hard enough to leave bruises.

"Again…" Harlow responded, leaning forward to capture his mouth in a heated kiss. "I never want you to stop touching me… Ever…" She rocked her hips, enjoying the feeling of him filling her completely once more and nipped at his bottom lip with her teeth. The house may have been uncharacteristically cold but she was blissfully unaware, the heat between her and Sam warming her to her very soul as they rocked together beneath the sheets caught up in a haze of passionate desire that neither one of them wanted to end any time soon.

Despite the fact that the house was still as chilly as a snowy winter's day that evening, Roman was adamant that his pre-birthday celebrations were still going to go ahead and as the night rolled on the alcohol was flowing freely and he had soon forgot all about the current heating problem. He had left Federico to chat with a friend who was fluent in whatever language it was that Federico spoke, a small detail that he should have known but if he was honest he didn't really care. When they were doing the things that Roman loved them doing the most, he didn't really need Federico to speak all that much, in fact he didn't really need him to talk at all so it never really bothered him that he didn't know what his boyfriend's mother tongue was. Besides, right now he was much more interested in Dean Winchester and the words coming out of his mouth as he stood talking to him and Gina in the lounge.

"So, you work in construction, right? With your brother?" Roman asked the six foot tall hunk in front of him, his arm draped over the shoulders of the little green eyed beauty that had barely left his side all night.

"That's right," Dean nodded, sipping his beer. "A family business sort of deal that our Dad got us into…" He added, Gina looking up at him in awe of the way he could spin a line with such a stoic expression on his face.

"My Dad wanted me to get into construction," Roman offered, Dean raising an eyebrow at him. "He was all into that male bonding stuff with me until he realized that I was more into actual bondage with males and our relationship kind of ended…" He stated matter-of-factly, Dean almost choking on his beer. "Are you okay?"

Dean nodded, tightening his hold around Gina as she buried her head into his chest to suppress her giggles; "Uh, yeah, man, I'm good…"

Sam stood with Zack, listening to him go on about his band and how they were planning on going into the recording studios next month or something. He wasn't really listening; his gaze and mind were focused on the redhead across the room dressed in a strappy black dress that stopped just above her knees. Harlow turned away from the conversation she was having with one of the party guests, catching Sam's gaze and holding it as she bit down on her bottom lip in a way that she knew he found unable to resist.

"I mean, I'm looking at a six to twelve month stretch out on the road but it'll be worth it…" Zack continued as if Sam was paying attention to him, oblivious to the way his friend was staring at his girlfriend across the room. "Once we get this record done and we start touring, man, it'll be the best feeling in the world…."

"Uh-huh, the best…" Sam muttered, his eyes still glued on Harlow as she turned back to the conversation she was having.

Zack looked up at Sam, smirking when he noticed that although his friend was in the same room as him, his mind certainly wasn't; "Of course it won't be as good as setting my girl on fire and dumping her body in the river…"

"Yeah, no doubt about it…" Sam snapped out of his current state and turned to look at Zack, realizing what he had just said. "Wait… What?!"

Zack patted his shoulder as he laughed; "I knew that would get your attention. You haven't listened to anything I've been telling you, you've just been standing there staring at Harlow…"

Sam raised his hand to rub the back of his head as he looked back at his friend sheepishly; "Sorry. I guess I just find it hard to concentrate when she's around…"

"No kidding!" Zack scoffed, gesturing to his empty beer bottle. "I need a refill, do you want one?"

"Sure…" Sam smiled at him and Zack nodded his head before walking off towards the kitchen. The young hunter watched his friend go before looking back towards where he knew Harlow would be standing with her friends but to his surprise she wasn't there.

He glanced around the room, his brow furrowing in concern as he tried to catch a glimpse of the redhead before someone came up behind him and placed their hands over his eyes, plunging him into darkness.

"Guess who?" A familiar voice whispered into his ear.

Sam smiled instantly, bringing his hands up to the ones over his eyes and pulling them away before turning around and taking Harlow into his arms.

"Hey, I was just looking for you…" He told her, Harlow smiling up at him as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I noticed…" She said, biting down on her bottom lip before nodding towards the stairs. "And I know this is my friend's birthday party but all I can think about is how badly I want to be alone with you right now…"

"Funny, because I was just thinking the same thing…" Sam whispered, brushing his lips against hers.

Harlow giggled, moving to grab his hand and leading him towards the stairs as Dean and Gina watched them from across the room.

"Are they going off to do what I think they're going to do?" Dean asked, glancing sideways at Gina who smiled back at him as she watched her two friends weave their way up the staircase.

"I don't think you need to know what they're going to do, Dean," She replied, glancing back at him. "Just be grateful that they're going upstairs to do it…"

"True…"

Once inside the safety of Harlow's bedroom with the door locked, Sam pushed Harlow back against the wall and kissed her fiercely; "I've missed you…"

Harlow's hands found the waistband of his jeans, tugging at the buttons; "I've missed you too…"

Sam pressed his warm, damp mouth to her throat as his hands slipped up under her dress, his fingers skimming over her panties; "I need you, Harlow…"

He allowed his thumb to draw small circles against her core; pressing against the satin and feeling the fabric dampen from his touch. Harlow let out a groan, pressing herself into his touch as she finally freed him from his denim constraints.

"I want you, Sammy…" She panted, looking up into his eyes as she pushed down his boxers, allowing them to fall and pool against the dark blue of his jeans. "Now…"

That was all Sam needed to hear and he pushed his way inside of her with a groan as Harlow wrapped herself around him and bucked her hips against his, pressing herself against him for all she was worth.

Downstairs, Roman had made his way into the kitchen to retrieve another drink or two and found Zack talking to Federico by the small partition wall that separated the kitchen from the dining area.

"Hey guys…" He nodded a greeting towards them, Federico instantly reaching out and grabbing his hand as Zack grinned at him.

"Hey Roman, what's the deal with this wall?" The green-eyed guitarist asked, gesturing towards the small wall he was standing beside and Roman shrugged his shoulders.

"How should I know, I didn't design the place, I just live here…" He tugged his hand free from Federico's and turned towards the ice bucket on the kitchen counter but his date grabbed his hand again, spinning him back towards the wall. "Damn it, Rico, I want a beer!"

"Place hand… Very nice," Federico grinned, raising Roman's hand towards the wall and pressing it against the damask wallpaper.

"Well, yeah, its great wallpaper," Roman groaned. "Can I get my drink now?" He moved to step away from the wall but Zack laughed and pushed the birthday boy's hand back against it.

"Just wait…."

Roman rolled his eyes, scowling at the two men as he started plotting a way to get them back for what seemed to be some kind of joke and then he felt something take hold of him. His hand seemed to merge with the wall, small ripples of pleasure washing over him again and again and making every part of his body tingle. He let out an involuntary gasp, Federico and Zack laughing as they watched him squirm with the delightful sensation that was pulsating through his body before he went completely rigid, his eyes rolling back into his head.

"Oh my God!" Roman cried out, the final climatic wave crashing over him as he panted for breath and looked back at his friends. "What was that?!"

"Dude, it's your house, you should know…" Zack laughed, Roman shaking his head at him as he managed to pull his hand away from the wall. His legs felt weak and he leaned against Federico for a moment to regain his composure.

"Well, whatever that was, it was amazing…." Roman gasped. "And I should totally charge for it…"

Dean and Gina sat on the stairs; talking softly to each other and watching the rest of the party guests weave their way in and out of the lounge excitedly. The hunter in Dean told him that something more than just alcohol was causing the buzz and he craned his neck to try and get a look into the room but he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. He turned to look at Gina, his brow furrowed.

"Something's going on…" He told her, Gina shaking her head at him.

"It's a party, Dean," She replied, taking a drink from the bottle in her hands. "Plenty of things will be going on…"

Dean shook his head; "No, something weird, G'. I just know it…"

"Is your Spidey sense tingling?" Gina taunted him, giggling at her own wit and Dean scowled at her. "Oh, come on, Dean, there's nothing spooky going on here. This is just a regular house party where people are going to get drunk and things are going to get a little wild. Turn the hunter off for once…" She smirked at her boyfriend. "I mean, if Sammy can relax enough to have a good time, I'm sure you can too…"

Dean pulled a face at her; "I'd rather not know how much of a good time my baby brother is having right now, thank you very much…"

Gina laughed, offering him the bottle of beer she held in her hands; "Here, drink this, maybe you'll chill out more…."

Dean smirked, shaking his head as he caught her gaze; "I'd rather have you…"

He placed his hand on her knee, sliding it slowly upwards and Gina shrieked, batting his hand away and dropping the bottle of beer as she jumped to her feet.

"Get off me! What are you doing? That's disgusting!" She yelled at him.

Dean rose to his feet, looking back at her in confusion; "G', what did I do?"

"You're dirty…" Gina snapped at him before running off up the stairs and Dean glanced around, letting out a sigh.

"Something weird is definitely going on here…." He muttered.

Harlow rolled off Sam, collapsing onto the bed beside him. She couldn't remember when they had made it to the bed but she was grateful that they had as her exhausted body relaxed into the soft mattress. Sam rolled onto his side, looking down at her and smiling.

"When did we get here?" He asked softly, gesturing to the bed and Harlow giggled as she smiled back up at him.

"I have no idea…"

Sam reached out and ran a hand down the side of Harlow's face as he stared down into her icy blue eyes; "You're amazing, you know that?"

Harlow shifted slightly so that she could bring her lips up to meet Sam's in a sweet kiss and that was all it took for the spark to ignite between them again. Sam pulled her towards him, his hand gripping her hip.

"You're too far away from me…" He whispered, kissing her softly.

"I'm right here…" Harlow replied, her fingers tangling in his hair and Sam shook his head as he rolled forward so that she was now pinned beneath him.

"That's still too far…" He murmured pressing his lips to hers again, resting his body in between her legs and Harlow felt herself slip into his tender embrace, unable to resist the urge to be intimately close to him again.

Zack was still standing beside the wall that stood in between the kitchen and dining area, laughing at the clueless party guests Roman was introducing to the joy he had discovered earlier. He watched as his friend Johnny succumbed to the intense sexual pleasure he was receiving through placing his hand on the wall and laughed at the way the bass player groaned and squirmed whilst glued to the spot.

"Man, JC, if that's the face you pull when you're getting laid no wonder you don't see any action…" He chuckled, watching his friend's face contort just as Gena approached him. "Oh, hey babe…Check this out, it's hilarious…"

"I don't want to watch Johnny get off, Zack…" Gena complained, bringing her hands up and gripping greedy fistfuls of her boyfriends t-shirt, pulling him close to her.

"Gena, what the…" Before Zack could finish his question, the blonde he was currently dating pressed her lips against his wildly and a little more inappropriate than what he was expecting from her. She pulled back before he could respond to the kiss, staring back at him in shock.

"Gena, are you okay?" Zack asked, knowing that something was clearly going on with his girlfriend and she shook her head before slapping him across the face and running off in tears. "What the fuck is she taking?" He grumbled, rubbing at his cheek as he watched his girlfriend push her way through the crowd.

Dean couldn't shake off the feeling that something was seriously wrong in the house he was currently standing in and as he watched Gena fleeing down the hallway, sobbing uncontrollably he knew that whatever it was it seemed to be affecting everyone around him. He started running through possible causes in his head as he made his way up the stairs, intent on finding Gina so that they could start to get to the bottom of this. There was no hope of him getting his baby brother away from the redhead he was currently tangled up in, he knew that for sure, so if he was going to investigate whatever it was that was causing people to go crazy at this party then he'd need his girlfriend's help. That's if she hadn't completely lost it too, the way she had blown up on him earlier freaked him out. She'd never reacted like that when he'd touched her before, not even when they had first started dating.

He reached the hallway, making his way along the narrow corridor towards the bathroom and resisting the urge to go bang hell out of Harlow's bedroom door just to interrupt whatever she was getting up to with Sam. He paused as he passed it, thinking about how pissed his little brother would be but then he heard a noise coming from the bathroom that sounded like a girl crying and continued on his way down the hall.

"G', you in here?" He called out, tapping lightly on the door to the bathroom and then twisting the handle when he got no response from the other side.

Walking into the bathroom, Dean glanced around looking for Gina but saw no sign of her. He let out a sigh and turned around to leave when the sound of a girl sobbing caught his attention again and he spun around, coming face to face with a young teenage girl with her hands bound and her hair hacked within an inch of her scalp. She was deathly pale and soaked through, staring at him with pleading eyes as tears ran down her face.

"Son of a bitch!" He cursed, stumbling backwards and the girl approached him, offering her bound hands out towards him.

"Please mister, help me…." She sobbed. "Help me…."

"Dean!" Gina called out to her boyfriend and the ghost girl vanished, Dean staring at where she had just been standing. "Dean!"

"In here…" Dean called back and Gina entered the bathroom, immediately walking up to him and throwing her arms around him.

"I'm sorry, you're right, something weird is going on here…." She told him, Dean pulling back from her embrace to look at her.

"What did you see?"

"It's not what I saw; it's what I heard…" Gina replied, looking up at him. "I came up here and I swear I could hear kids out in the hall, they were laughing and playing and then…." She swallowed hard and Dean knew she was frightened.

"Then what, baby?" He asked gently.

"They were screaming, like they were scared…." Gina paused. "Dean, they were afraid of something… Or someone. What the Hell is going on here?"

"I don't know but whatever it is, it's not good…" Dean replied. "There was a kid in here, well, a ghost... She asked me to help her…." He glanced around, Gina looking up at him ready to follow his lead. "We need to get Sam…" He decided, gripping his girlfriends hand and leading her out into the hallway.

Zack wandered throughout the downstairs of Harlow's home searching for his girlfriend, intent on finding out what was wrong with her. There was no sign of her anywhere and he was just about to head up the stairs to look for her up there when he heard the faint sound of someone crying in the broom cupboard underneath the staircase. He stopped and listened closely, recognizing the sobs as those of his girlfriends and pulled the door open without as much as a second thought. The scene playing out before him shocked him to his very core and for a moment he couldn't do anything but stare at the beautiful blonde cutting off chunks of her hair with a pair of scissors.

"Baby, what are you doing?" He asked, snapping out of his trance and realizing that his girlfriend needed his help.

"I'm a bad girl…" Gena muttered, tears rolling down her cheeks as she hacked off another handful of her golden locks. "A bad, bad girl…"

"Baby, seriously, what the fuck have you took?" Zack stepped into the cupboard, pulling the scissors out of Gena's hands before helping her up to her feet and guiding her out into the hallway. "Come on; let's get you some air…"

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean yelled, pounding his balled fist on the door of Harlow's bedroom as Gina stood behind him waiting anxiously for a response from either of her friends. "SAM!"

Inside the bedroom, Sam collapsed on top of Harlow, panting for breath, his skin glistening with sweat. He was vaguely aware of movement outside in the hallway, of someone calling his name.

"Harl', can you hear something?" He asked the redhead beneath him but she shook her head, pressing her lips to his as she scraped her nails lightly down his back.

"No…" Harlow whispered, pulling him towards her by wrapping her legs firmly around his. "But you've stopped touching me…" She nipped at his bottom lip. "Don't ever stop touching me…"

Sam reached for her with a groan and their love-making started again, the young couple close to the point of complete exhaustion but neither one attempting to put an end to what they were doing.

"SAM!" Dean pounded his balled fist against the door again, shaking it within its frame but he still didn't get a response from the bedrooms inhabitants. "SAMMY!"

Gina was just about to suggest that they try again a little later as it was obvious that the couple within the confines of the bedroom was a little preoccupied but then she saw two little green shoots poke out from underneath the door.

"Dean…" The brunette nudged her boyfriends arm, making him look at her and she gestured down towards the greenery growing underneath her best friend's door. "Look…"

Dean glanced down at his feet, stepping back and pushing Gina behind him when he noticed the green shoots multiply before his very eyes as they continued to snake their way out from underneath the door.

"What the….?"

There was a low rumble then, followed by an earthquake like tremble and the house shook like a leaf in the wind. Gina clung onto Dean as they were forced back away from the bedroom with the impact of the shake and they tumbled towards the stairs. People started to scream and run out of the house as it shook again, this one a lot more powerful than the last. Pictures fell off the walls, lights flickered wildly and the plants that had started to sprout out of Harlow's room were now thick, thorny vines that completely covered the door.

"Dean, what the Hell is going on?!" Gina demanded to know, Dean shaking his head as he grabbed her hand and helped her to hurry down the stairs.

"We need to get out of here!" Dean told her, pushing her towards the front door when they reached the hallway.

"What about Harlow? And Sammy?" The brunette asked, Dean glancing up the stairs where he knew his brother and girlfriend were now trapped by whatever supernatural force they were dealing with this time.

"Don't worry, we'll get them…" He assured Gina, looking back at her. "Right now, we just need to get out of here…" He ushered her towards the door, noticing Zack standing on the porch holding Gena who was sporting a new hairstyle and Roman who looked like he'd seen a ghost or twenty.

"What's going on?" Zack immediately asked his sister when she stepped out onto the porch but Gina shrugged her shoulders.

"No clue, I've never known anything like this. Maybe we should call Dad…." She said, turning to look back at Dean who was already pulling out his cell phone to call his own father.

"I'm on it," He told her, stepping over the threshold. Moments later the door to the house slammed shut violently behind him and the entire house trembled with the impact. Dean spun around on his heels, immediately trying the door handle but it wouldn't budge. The door seemed to have merged into the framework of the house, locking Harlow and Sam inside of it. "SAM!" Dean started pounding on the door. "HARLOW!"

Harlow and Sam remained oblivious to events taking place outside of the bedroom, too lost in each other to realize that their friends had been forced out of the house and were now locked out on the porch trying desperately to get back inside. The vines outside their door were growing thick and fast, keeping them enclosed inside the dark bedroom and any potential rescuers out. They spread out along the hall, snaking their way down the stairs and leaving a web of thorny green leaves in their wake. They covered the doorways and the floor, turning the inside of the house into a jungle and all the while Sam and Harlow were completely oblivious to what was happening, blissfully unaware that their passion was causing such chaos.

Outside, Dean was still trying to get the door open while Gina dished out orders.

"Zee, I need you to take Gena home and tell Dad and John what's going on. If anyone can figure this out, it's them…" She told her brother who nodded in compliance, clutching his frightened girlfriend.

Roman looked over at the brunette; "What about me? This is my home and that's my best friend in there!"

Gina placed her hands on Roman's arms, looking him dead in the eye; "I know, and we'll get her out. We'll get both of them out. But right now, I need you to go find Federico and stay with him until you hear from me. Can you do that?"

"But, Gina…"

"Roman! I need you safe. I promise you that I'm not going to let anything bad happen to Harlow… Not now, not ever. You got me?" Gina stared at Roman, her green eyes boring into his as she waited for him to agree to her request and the blonde male eventually folded.

"Okay," He nodded. "Okay, but you get my girl out of there…"

"I will, I promise…" Gina assured him and Roman hugged her before running off to find his date. The brunette watched him go before turning to her brother. "What are you still doing here? Haul ass and get Dad already!" She snapped at him and Zack hurried off the porch with Gena tucked under his arm, scrambling into his car and speeding off into the night to get help.

Dean booted at the door with all his might, putting all of his strength into each kick, determined to break the wooden structure down so that he could get to his little brother and Harlow. Gina watched as he took a step back and then ran at the door, bringing his boot up to connect with the wood and with a crash the door flew open, sending Dean hurling into the hallway. He smacked into the wall, landing into a heap of limbs on the floor and Gina rushed to the doorway, staring at him.

"Dean!" She called out after him, smiling in relief when he raised a hand and waved weakly at her.

"I'm okay…." He called back, wincing as he got to his feet and taking a moment to get his bearings before noticing the thick vines spreading thick and fast towards him. "Scratch that…"

Gina didn't have a chance to respond to his statement, all she could do was watch as the vines stretched out towards her boyfriend before some kind of invisible force picked him up and threw him through the air, sending him back over the threshold before the door slammed shut again and the thick green vines from inside the house spread out around it, sealing the entrance off.

Dean landed with a thud on the lawn, Gina rushing to his side as he lay there trying to get his breath back.

"Dean, are you okay?" The brunette asked, dropping to her knees and looking at her boyfriend in concern. He coughed, wincing at the pain he felt in his chest, and looked back up at her.

"I've had worse…"

Zack found his father and John Winchester discussing their search for the colt at the kitchen table. The two men looked up when the eldest of the Baker children entered the room, tugging his scared looking girlfriend in behind him.

"Zack, what is it?" Matthew Baker asked his son, immediately rising from his seat and walking over to him.

"There's something freaky going on at Harlow's house, G' told me to come get you…"

"Is she still there?" Matthew wanted to know and Zack nodded.

"She's with Dean…" He replied. "Dad, the house just seemed to take on a life of its own. Everyone started acting weird and all this crazy stuff started happening…" He paused, looking up at his father with concern in his emerald green eyes. "Dad, Harlow and Sam are trapped in there…"

John got to his feet upon hearing his youngest son's name; "Where are they?"

"Harlow's place on Parker Drive…" Zack replied, looking over at John. "618"

John thought for a moment before grabbing his journal and flicking through it. Matthew looked over at his friend, knowing that he was on to something.

"John, what is it?"

"Parker Drive, I know that name…" John replied, flipping pages over until he found what he was looking for and he tapped his finger against the journal entry. "I knew it! Parker Drive is where that old orphanage used to be…" He looked up at Matthew, beckoning him over to look at the journal with a nod of his head. "Back in the sixties, a group of nuns ran the local orphanage and it wasn't until the mid-eighties when the place got closed down that reports of child abuse and all kinds of torture came to light…Some kids even died in there, with the nuns claiming that they were helping the children to find God…"

Matthew read over the passage before looking up at his friend; "Are you thinking this has something to do with what's happening at Harlow's?"

"The orphanage was bought by a building firm and instead of demolishing it; they decided to divide the place up into a set of new houses because they liked the look of the building…" John started to explain. "It sounds to me like there could be a lot of angry spirits roaming that place. I bet one of them is inside Harlow's home…"

"So what do we do?" Zack asked, looking between the two men as Gena stood shivering beneath his arm.

"I'm not going back there…" She announced adamantly, Zack rubbing her shoulder reassuringly.

"No one said you had to, sweetheart…" He told her soothingly, pressing a kiss to her head before looking back at his Dad. "Gina needs help, Dad…"

"John, the kids need our help. Is this a simple salt and burn?" Matthew wanted to know, looking back at his long-time friend.

John nodded, starting to gather up his things; "Sounds like it, let's go…"

Dean and Gina were standing helplessly on the porch trying to figure out how to get back into the house when their Dads arrived in John's pick-up truck. They had tried breaking the door down again but had no success and the windows may as well have been a part of the wall because of how hard it was to break them.

"Gina!" Matthew called out to his young daughter as he got out of the truck and the brunette looked over at him, smiling with relief.

"Dad!" She ran down the porch steps towards him. "We can't get in. Sam and Harlow are still in there. Dad, we've gotta help them…"

"We will, honey, we will…" Matthew assured her, walking back up onto the porch with her as John followed them, clutching an axe and a rucksack filled with supplies they might need.

He surveyed the house, glancing at Dean who was watching him attentively, almost as if he was waiting for his father's command.

"Have you tried the windows?" He asked his eldest son and Dean nodded.

"Yes sir, they're sealed shut…" He replied obediently. "Something definitely doesn't want us to get in…"

"Or Sammy and Harlow to get out…." Gina added with a hint of panic in her voice and her father looked at her.

"Maybe you should sit this one out, sweetheart…"

Gina looked up at her Dad, immediately going on the defensive as she jutted out her hip and rested her hand upon it; "Nu-uh, Dad, this is my gig. That's Harlow in there! When that kid came to us in tears all those years ago I swore to protect her and that's what I'm gonna do…"

Matthew was just about to protest when his cell phone rang out, breaking the tense silence that had filled the night air and he pulled it out of his pocket, bringing it up to his ear to answer it.

"Hello?"

"_Dad, it's me…"_

"Zack…" Matthew smiled slightly, hoping that his son was about to tell him something useful. "Have you found anything?"

"_Dad, I think you've got a poltergeist on your hands… A girl died in that home, she was drowned by one of the nuns who claimed to be saving her soul from Lucifer… They caught her kissing a boy and hacked off her hair before performing what I guess they thought was a baptism ritual…"_

"Great…" Matthew sighed. "What else have you got for me?"

"_Well, I think with all the hormones flying around lately, what with Harlow and Sam at it like rabbits, that they're feeding her rage. Like, she never got to act out on all of that or whatever… Whatever it is, she's pissed and if you guys don't stop her, she's going to kill them…."_

"Okay, thanks, son…" Matthew hung up the phone and slipped it back into his jeans pocket as he looked back at his daughter and the two Winchester men in front of him.

"Well, what did Zack say?" Gina wanted to know.

"If Sam and Harlow don't stop what they're doing in there, they'll die…"

"Well, I can think of worse ways to go…" Dean remarked with an amused smirk and Gina glared at him.

"That's not funny, Dean! Sam and Harlow are in danger; we need to figure out how to stop this thing before it kills them…." The brunette scolded him and Dean pulled a face at her, gesturing towards the door.

"Yeah? Well, first we've gotta get in there…."

John stepped forward, the axe in his hands held high and ready to aim at the front door to the house; "Step back…"

After what seemed like forever to Gina, John finally managed to gain them some access to the house and entered the hallway triumphantly, still swinging his axe at the vines like a mad man. Once the hallway was clear enough for the four of them to stand together in a small close circle, John gestured to Matthew to open the rucksack and immediately started to pull weapons out of it.

"Let's split up. Dean, you and Gina go get Harlow and your brother…" John offered a machete out to his son who took it without question. "Matt and I will salt and burn this little bitch…"

"On it…" Dean concurred, grabbing Gina's hand and helping her up the stairs as he cut at the vines with the machete in his other hand.

John and Matthew watched their kids go up the stairs before cutting themselves a path into the lounge. They exchanged a glance before moving in opposite directions, stepping cautiously further into the home and hacking at any vines that were in their way. Matthew headed towards the kitchen whilst John investigated the lounge and it wasn't long until the head of the Baker clan was calling out to his friend for assistance.

Gina heard her father shout his companions name and knew that he was in trouble. She glanced worriedly down the stairs before looking back at Dean who squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"They can handle it; we've got to get Harlow and Sam…" He told her and she nodded, moving carefully up the stairs behind him.

When they reached the hallway they discovered that it was near impossible to get to Harlow's room, the doorway now nothing more than a thick wall of heavy vines woven tightly together. Dean let out a breath, clutching the machete in his hands and preparing himself for what he was about to do. If he wanted his baby brother back then he was going to have to tackle the jungle in front of him first.

He glanced sideways at Gina, offering her a smirk; "Right, let's go shake our little lovebird's outta their nest…"

The young couple moved towards their friend's bedroom when there was a sudden splash of water behind them, like someone had tossed something, or someone, into the bathtub and then there was screaming and the unmistakable sound of a struggle. Without even hesitating, Gina ran off towards the bathroom vaguely aware of Dean calling out her name behind her.

She burst open the bathroom door, surprised to find it empty but the white bathtub full to the brim with water. Glancing back at Dean in the hallway she signaled to him that she was okay before walking into the tiled room to empty the tub.

Harlow was sore all over, her mouth was swollen from being well and truly kissed by Sam and yet she found herself unable to stay away from him. She needed him, she needed to feel his skin on hers, and she needed to feel him inside of her. There was no way to describe it other than 'need'. As he lay beside her, breathless and panting, the only thing she could think of was that he was too far away from her. He was right next to her, his body pressed up against hers, but it was too far. He was too far, she needed him closer and rolling over to place kisses against his chest it wasn't long before her need was quelled as their bodies connected once more.

Downstairs, John had rushed to Matthew's aid to find his friend face to face with the ghost of what must have been the youngster who had died at the hands of the crazed nuns. She was staring at Matthew as she offered her bound hands out to him, pushing him back up against the kitchen wall.

"Help me…" She pleaded. "Help me, mister. They tell me I'm bad… I'm not; I'm a good girl…"

John pulled his gun out of the waistband of his jeans and quickly aimed it at the spirit who snapped her head around to look at him with huge pleading eyes.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart; I don't negotiate with ghosts…" He remarked before pulling the trigger and watching as she disintegrated the moment the rock salt bullet hit her.

Matthew let out a breath of relief before realizing that John could have easily hit him instead of the ghost girl; "Hey, jackass, you could have shot me!"

John smiled, placing the safety back onto his revolver and slipping it back into his waistband; "You're welcome. Now, let's gank this bitch before she comes back…"

Dean sliced and chopped at the vines, cursing under his breath when one whipped back and hit him in the face, its thorn cutting his cheek. He wasn't going to be deterred though, his little brother was in that room and if Dean didn't get him out he wasn't going to make it through the night. There was no way that Dean was going to allow that to happen, he hadn't spent his entire life looking out for Sam just to let him die now, no way, no how. He was getting his baby brother out of there even if it killed him in the process.

He was just raising his machete ready to hack at another vine when he was startled by a loud, wild scream. Gina's scream. Still clutching the machete, he turned and ran towards the bathroom rushing into the room to find his girlfriend bent over the tub with her head and shoulders fully submersed in the water.

"Gina!" Dean yelled, dropping the knife and rushing to the brunette's aide. He grabbed her around the waist, tugging her away from the tub but it was like something was holding her under and it took him at least two good solid attempts before he finally freed her.

They fell back against the tiled floor, Gina dripping wet from the waist up and gasping for air. Dean held her in his arms, pushing her wet hair away from her face and staring at her.

"G', you okay?" He asked, desperate to know that his girlfriend was fine and smiling a little when Gina coughed and opened her eyes to look back at him.

"That bitch ruined my hair…" She spluttered angrily and Dean laughed, pressing his lips to her damp forehead.

"Baby, you look just fine…" He assured her. "Come on, we've got a job to do…"

Dean helped Gina up off the floor, shrugging off his leather jacket and placing it around her shoulders as she looked up at him.

"I swear, after tonight, I'm banning Sam and Harlow from ever being in the same room together…."

Dean chuckled softly; "Says the girl who got them together…"

They turned towards the door, Dean picking up the knife he had dropped and they were just about to leave when the ghost girl appeared in front of them, only this time she wasn't crying… She looked pissed.

"There's got to be something in here that's tying her to this place," John said as he looked around downstairs with Matthew. "A doll, a picture, a dress… Anything…"

As his hunting friend ran off a list of objects that could possibly link the young girl's spirit to the house, Matthew searched the kitchen before noticing the wall that separated the cooking area from the dining area. It looked odd, out of place, almost as if it wasn't supposed to be there. This intrigued him and with the handle of the knife he held in his hands, Matthew started to tap along the wall stopping when he hit a hollow spot.

"Hey John, come see this…" He called out to the eldest of the Winchester men and John joined him in the kitchen, curious to find out what his companion had found. "I don't think this wall's supposed to be here…"

John tapped his fist against it, nodding his head knowingly when he heard the hollow sound; "I think you're right. Maybe there's something behind it…"

Matthew considered his friends suggestion and flipped open the rucksack he was carrying before pulling out a small mallet and smiling at John.

"Let's find out…"

Dean pushed Gina behind him protectively as they stood face to face with the spirit that was causing all this mayhem in the house.

"Look, we're real sorry that you got placed with a bunch of crazy nuns and that now you're pissed about it but we're just trying to help you here…." He started, the ghost girl tilting her head to the side as she watched him. "That's what you want, right? For us to help you?"

The ghost girl shook her head before whispering; "I want you to die…"

It didn't take long for Matthew to break a hole in the partition wall and with the help of John using the handle of his axe to make the hole wider, the two hunters soon discovered exactly what was keeping the girl's spirit tied to the house. Behind the wall was the skeleton of a youngster, its hands bound together with frayed rope. The two men looked at each other for a brief moment before John reached for the rucksack and pulled out the canister of salt.

"Looks like they hid her in the wall once she'd drowned," Matthew concluded, taking the salt off John and pouring it over the bones within the hole in the wall. "Poor kid, no wonder she's pissed…"

Dean and Gina watched as the ghost girl approached them, her once pleading and tear-filled eyes now cold and lifeless. She stepped towards Dean who held his machete out in front of him.

"Trust me, bitch, I'm not afraid to use this if I have to…" Dean told her. "I've taken out bigger son of a bitches than you…"

"Dean, you know that won't actually do anything to her, right?" Gina hissed over his shoulder. "I mean, it's not even iron…"

"Yeah, well she doesn't know that…" Dean hissed back and Gina slipped her hands into the waistband of his jeans. "You want to get freaky now, G', really?"

Gina pulled his revolver loaded with rock salt bullets out of his waistband and showed it to him; "No, dumbass, I wanted your gun…"

"And I thought you actually loved me for me…" Dean joked as Gina stepped out from behind him and aimed the revolver at the spirit in front of them.

She was just about to pull the trigger when the girl started to flicker, her spirit having a hard time maintaining its form and then she was on fire. Orange flames creeping their way up from her toes before engulfing her completely as she screamed for mercy. Gina turned to look at Dean and shrugged her shoulders.

"Guess our Dad's found what was keeping her here…"

"Yeah," Dean nodded as Gina handed him back his gun and he smiled. "Come on, let's go get Harlow and Sam before they do anymore damage…"

They stepped out into the hallway, amazed to see that all the vines had disappeared and that there was hardly a trace of evidence to say that they'd been there at all. Making their way towards Harlow's room, they found that the door looked normal again and with a quick glance at Gina beside him, Dean twisted the handle.

The door swung open to reveal Sam and Harlow wrapped up in the sheets of the redhead's bed and both looking horrified at being caught in such an intimate moment.

"Dude, it's called knocking!" Sam snapped at his brother who just took Gina by the hand and laughed as they walked away.

"So, we had a dead girl in the wall of our house?" Roman asked Dean the following day, staring at him in disbelief.

"Yup," The hunter replied, Roman visibly shuddering at the thought of a corpse being inside his home.

"And that's what caused all the weird stuff that happened at my party?"

"Well…." Dean looked over at Sam who was leaning against the Impala talking to Harlow and smiled before looking back at Roman. "Let's just say that she was pissed because my little brother was getting more action than she was…" He smirked, earning himself a smack on the arm off Gina beside him.

"Don't listen to him, Ro', he's an ass…." The brunette told her friend before they said their goodbyes and she dragged Dean over to where his brother and Harlow were waiting for them.

"Hey…" Sam greeted them when he saw them approaching and Dean grinned at him. "Will you stop looking at me like that?"

"Nope, not ever…" Dean teased him. "You dog, you…" He punched his brother playfully in the arm and Sam immediately retaliated by hitting him back. Before long, the two Winchester siblings were play fighting on the lawn as the girls stood beside the Impala watching them.

"I feel so bad about all of this…" Harlow suddenly confessed, Gina glancing at her.

"Harl', you've got nothing to feel bad about," The brunette comforted her friend and Harlow tore her gaze away from Sam wrestling with his brother to look at her.

"G', if Sam and I hadn't of got so caught up in each other then none of this would ever have happened…"

"If it wasn't you two, it could have easily been another couple…" Gina assured her. "The fact is, Harl', is that it's dealt with now and you've got nothing to feel bad about. What happened between you and Sammy was perfectly natural. Hell, I was just as bad when I first got with Dean…" She watched as Harlow smiled and allowed her gaze to fall back upon Sam. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure…"

"When Sammy accidentally looks at you, do you feel all giddy inside?" Gina asked and Harlow smiled dreamily as she watched Sam goof around with Dean. She glanced back at her best friend who was waiting for her response with a knowing smile on her face.

"When he looks at me, accidental or not, I feel like I'm having a heart attack," The redhead confessed and Gina chuckled softly as she shook her head and wrapped an arm around the younger girl's shoulders.

"Girl, you've got it bad for a Winchester," She grinned, looking over at Dean who had his baby brother in a head lock. "There's no hope for you now… You're one of us…"

The Winchester brothers stopped their play fight, realizing that they were acting like a couple of deviant kids on someone else's lawn and looked over towards the girls standing beside the Impala. Dean noticed the way Gina was grinning at Harlow and glanced at Sam as he smoothed out his shirt.

"Hey, what do you think they're talking about?" He asked, nodding towards the girls and Sam smiled before looking back at him.

"Us," He replied bluntly, watching the way Harlow was trying to hide the fact that she was blushing.

Dean looked at him quizzically before glancing back over at the girls who were still lost in their discussion across the way and then looking back at his little brother.

"Seriously?"

"Yup…" Sam nodded, patting his brother on the back before walking off towards Harlow.

The girls stopped talking when the guy they were talking about approached them and Gina smiled up at him.

"Hey Sammy!"

"Hey, can I, uh, borrow Harlow for a second?" Sam asked politely, making Harlow look up at him and Gina nodded her head instantly.

"Sure thing," The brunette told him. "I'm going to go say goodbye to your brother…"

Sam watched Gina walk off before taking hold of Harlow's hand and pulling her to him in a hug. He buried his nose in her hair as she rested her head against his chest, her fingers playing with the zipper of his jacket.

"So, this has been one crazy weekend, huh?" He asked, Harlow simply murmuring her reply as she nodded her head and Sam knew that she was trying not to cry. "I wish this could be easier, Harl'…"

Harlow looked up at him then, her blue eyes filled to the brim with the sadness she felt about her boyfriend's imminent departure; "How long will you be gone for this time?"

Sam let out a breath, knowing that he would never be able to give her a solid answer to that question; "I don't know, Harl'… It could be a week, it could be a month. The only thing I know is that Dad's got a solid lead on Yellow Eyes now and I want this thing to be over. I want to kill that son of a bitch and try and get some normality back in my life…"

"Well, when it's over, I'll be right here for you…" Harlow whispered and Sam studied her for a moment before shaking his head.

"I'm not going to be selfish and ask you to do that, Harlow. I know that you've got your own life to lead…" He let out a heavy sigh, his heart breaking with every word he spoke. "I'm not expecting to find you waiting for me when this is all over…"

Harlow stepped back a little so that she could meet his gaze; "Sammy, I've been waiting for you my whole life. I'm not giving up on you now…"

"You're something else, you know that?" Sam smiled and Harlow grinned back at him.

"I'm a girl in love with a Winchester; apparently waiting is part of the gig…" She told him, stealing a glance over at Gina who was wrapped up in Dean's embrace as they said their goodbyes.

"You know, I kinda love you too…" Sam said as he pulled her into his chest again and Harlow clung to him for all she was worth.

"Try not to get yourself killed, Sammy…." She whispered and Sam chuckled softly as he stroked his hand against her hair.

"You know, most people just say 'Take care' or 'Stay safe'…"

"I know, but those phrases seem a tad redundant considering what I know you're about to face…" Harlow mumbled, burying herself into Sam's strong chest and breathing in his scent.

"I'm gonna kill Yellow Eyes, Harl', and then I'm going to come find you…" Sam promised her, kissing her hair and Harlow glanced up at him, trying her best to smile through the sadness she felt.

"Hopefully in tact, I kinda like your limbs the way that they are…" She smirked, moving her hands to rest on his arms and squeezing them gently. "Attached to you…"

"If I was Dean I'd probably make an inappropriate comment about that right about now…" Sam laughed.

"Well, thankfully you're not him otherwise I'd get one Hell of a beating off Gina for what I'm about to do…"

"And what's that?"

"This…" Harlow reached up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Sam's in a kiss that would have to last them for however long they were going to be apart this time.

"Alright Sammy, let's haul ass…" Dean called out to his baby brother, moving towards the Impala with Gina tucked under his arm. "Dad's meeting us at the Baker's…"

Sam broke the kiss and looked at Harlow before kissing her again and whispering; "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"You better had…" Harlow whispered back, staring into Sam's caramel eyes. "I love you…"

"I love you too, Harl'…." Sam smiled, kissing her one last time before reluctantly letting go of her and joining his brother inside their car.

Harlow moved to stand beside Gina who was wiping at the tears that had escaped from behind her eyes and slung an arm around her friend's shoulders as they watched the Winchester brothers drive off. She smiled when she saw Sam turn around in his seat to look back at her and wave just like he had when they were kids and she waved back at him until the Impala's taillights disappeared from her line of sight. Her man was off into battle and all she had to do was wait… Which wouldn't be too hard, would it?

**To Be Continued….**


	4. In My Time Of Dying

**In My Time Of Dying**

Sam awoke to the sound of 'Bad Moon Rising' playing on the radio unable to recall what had just happened until he saw the truck that had crashed into them on the highway and the unaffected driver get out of the cab, making his way towards them. The young hunter swallowed, barely able to focus but he kept his eyes on the man walking towards him aware that something wasn't quite right. In fact, he was pretty sure that the truck driver was possessed by a demon and without taking his eyes off the man coming towards him; he reached down and wrapped his fingers around the Colt.

The possessed truck driver ripped the driver's side door off its hinges, Sam pointing the Colt at him without any hesitation.

"Back or I'll kill you. I swear to God," He warned the trucker, the man's little show of strength confirming his suspicions that he was indeed under a demonic possession.

"You won't. You're saving that bullet for someone else," The demon taunted him and Sam cocked the gun in his hands, loading one of the bullets ready to fire.

"You wanna bet?"

The demon smiled but chose to go with its flight instinct rather than chance Sam shooting him and it escaped the truck driver's body, black smoke pouring out of the man's mouth and vanishing into the night sky. Sam watched as the truck driver collapsed to the ground and uncocked the Colt, dropping his head back against his seat in relief. If the demon had chosen to fight and he had missed the shot, he wasn't sure what would have happened but he knew that it wouldn't have been pretty. The demon had obviously run them off the road on purpose.

"Oh my God!" The trucker suddenly cried out, coming round and taking in the sight of the crash before him.

Sam was aware that the man was bound to be feeling confused but he was more concerned with the welfare of his father and brother. He looked at his dad beside him, noticing the blood on his face.

"Dad?"

"Did I do this?" The bewildered trucker asked Sam but the hunter ignored him, intent on trying to get a response out of his family.

"Dad!" Sam called out to his father, hoping that he would wake up before he turned his attention to his brother who was silent in the backseat. "Dean? Dean!"

Harlow awoke with a start to the shrill sound of her phone ringing and immediately sat bolt upright in bed, her eyes scanning the darkness of the room as her hand slipped beneath her pillow and clutched the .45 she kept under there. Given what she had been through in the past with her father and everything she had previously discovered about what dangers lurked in the dark, the gun made her feel safe especially since Sam had made sure it was loaded with rock salt bullets before he left to hit the road with his family once more.

The piercing shriek of her cell phone still rang out throughout her home and, realizing that she wasn't in any imminent danger the redhead dropped her hold on the gun and reached over to switch on her bedside lamp, picking up her cell phone as she did so and noticing that it had just turned four in the morning. She cursed; whoever it was better have a good reason for calling her so damn early on her day off.

"Hello?" She asked, her voice still laden with the sleep she had just been disturbed from but the voice that answered her woke her up faster than any cold splash of water to the face ever could.

"_Hey Harl', it's me..."_

"Sam?! What is it? What's wrong?!" Harlow demanded to know, her instincts telling her that something had happened to her boyfriend. Why else would he be calling her early morning whilst away on a hunt with his family?

"_I need you to do something for me, okay?" _Sam asked, Harlow nodding even though she was well aware that he was unable to see her.

"What is it?"

"_I need you to not freak out when I tell you something..."_

"You playing Mr. Cryptic is hardly going to keep me from 'freaking out', Sam..." Harlow replied, throwing back the covers and swinging her legs out of the bed. "Just tell me what's wrong, I know this isn't a social call," She told him, rising to her feet and making her way out of her bedroom intent on getting some caffeine in her system.

"_Okay, just listen to me... There's been an accident, a demon ran us off the road and I'm okay, but..." _Sam trailed off and Harlow came to a halt at the top of her stairs.

"But, what?" The redhead asked, leaning against the wall beside her and preparing herself for whatever news her boyfriend was about to share with her.

"_Dad's laid up pretty bad and Dean..." _Sam fell silent.

Harlow peeled herself away from the wall; "Is he okay? Sam? Sammy, baby, talk to me…"

"_Dean's in a really bad way, he's in a coma and I don't know what to do…" _Sam finally spoke again and Harlow could hear the worry and fear in his voice._ "I'm a mess, Harl', and I guess I just needed to hear your voice..."_

"Okay, now it's your turn to listen to me..." Harlow began assertively as she made her way back towards her bedroom. Her coffee could wait; she needed to get dressed and ready to go see Sam. "You need to call Gina and tell her what's happened and where you guys are. I'm going to make my way over to her place and we're coming to be with you…"

"_Harl'…"_

"Don't try to fight me on this one, Sam Winchester, because you'll lose…." The redhead snapped, throwing the doors to her closet open as she cradled her phone between her ear and shoulder. "We're coming and that's that..."

"_Okay…"_ Sam conceded, knowing that Harlow was right and that this wasn't a fight he was going to win. Besides, a part of him really wanted her to be at the hospital with him while he waited for news on his brother.

"Right, I need to get dressed…" Harlow told him. "Call Gina and let her know that I'm on my way to get her…"

"_I will…And Harl'?"_

"Yeah?"

"_I love you…" _

"I love you too and I'll see you soon…." Harlow told him with a smile before the line went dead and she snapped her phone shut, tossing it onto the bed so that she could get ready to drive over to her best friend's house.

The sound of her phone ringing disturbed Gina from her work and she glanced up from her sketchbook to look over at the clock on her study wall. It was a little after four in the morning and it dawned on her then that she had stayed up all night again. In an attempt to keep herself busy while Dean was away the brunette had started staying late at her office and then returning home to continue working on sketches of her new designs. She rose from her seat at her desk, grabbing her phone out of her purse on the floor and answering the call.

"Hello?"

"_Gina, it's Sam…"_ Sam's voice was weak and Gina guessed that the boys had just finished a hunt.

"Sam, you sound like hell, what happened?" The brunette wanted to know and Sam sighed before answering her.

"_Gina… There was an accident…"_ He trailed off, his heart breaking at the thought of having to tell his brother's girlfriend what had happened.

"What?!" Gina shrieked, grabbing her purse and heading out of her study, forgetting all about her sketches. "What happened, Sam?!"

"_Some truck driver, he was possessed, and he ran the Impala off the road…"_

"Where are you guys? I'm leaving right now!"

"_Gina, slow down and listen to me…"_

Gina stopped running around just long enough to listen to what Sam was trying to tell her; "What is it?"

"_Dean's laid up real bad…"_ Sam sighed. _"They're not sure if he's gonna wake up, G'…"_

Gina felt the world around her crumble. Her entire life, everything that had seemed so perfect up until those words had left Sam's mouth had seemingly gone up in flames in less than a minute.

"_Gina?"_ Sam's voice sounded distant to her, more distant than it should have, even over the phone.

"Sam, please tell me the truth about him. I've only just got him back, I'm not prepared to lose him again," Gina sobbed. "What have the doctors said?"

"_I haven't heard from any of them in a while but they say it's not looking good…" _Sam replied honestly. _"G', if this is it for him; he'd want you to be here… Harlow said that…"_

Their conversation was cut short by someone banging at Gina's front door and Gina glanced out of the window to see her red-haired friend pacing anxiously on her doorstep.

"Harlow's here, Sammy…" Gina announced, running downstairs with her phone still glued to her ear. She swung the door open to reveal the distressed redhead, dressed in jeans and a hoodie with a small overnight bag slung over her shoulder. "Come in, I'm still on the phone with Sam…"

"Has he told you where they are yet? I told him to tell you while I drove over here…" Harlow said, walking into the house and Gina shook her head before speaking into the phone.

"Sam, you need to tell me where you guys are so that we can head out…"

Sam was silent on the other end and Gina started to pace, gesturing to Harlow to go get her bag and purse from upstairs. The redhead nodded and shot up the stairs to retrieve her friend's belongings.

"Sam?"

"We're in St Michael's Memorial Hospital, South Dakota…" Sam sighed.

"We're on our way; we should be with you in a few hours…." Gina told him as Harlow came down the stairs, carrying the bag Gina had packed hastily and her black purse.

"Okay but Gina…"

"Yeah?"

"Drive safe…" Sam told her, Gina smiling at the irony of his request as she watched Harlow dig around in the purse she was holding for the keys to the brunette's car.

"We'll see you in a few hours, Sammy…" Gina gung up the phone, holding her hand out towards Harlow for the car keys the redhead had just fished out of the purse and Harlow passed them to her. "Okay, we've got a long drive ahead of us so let's boogie…"

Gina took hold of her overnight bag, slinging a small jacket over her arm before heading towards the door and Harlow stood watching her, a look of worry suddenly falling across her face. The brunette noticed that her friend wasn't following her and turned around to face her.

"What is it, Harl'?"

"Gina…" Harlow walked up to her friend slowly. "What if what was after the boys comes after us?" She asked in a small voice and Gina patted her bag, offering the redhead a small reassuring smile.

"I'm fully prepared for that, Harl'…" The brunette told her. "You don't date a Winchester boy and not pick up a trick or two along the way..."

"Are you sure?" Harlow looked scared, something was after the Winchesters and she knew that herself or the brunette facing her could easily be the 'thing's' next target just for being associated with them.

"Harlow, I'm sure…" Gina moved to put her arm around her surrogate little sister and guided her out of her home. "Not only do I date a hunter but I was raised by one. Don't worry; if anything comes at us, I've got it covered…"

Taking comfort in the knowledge that Harlow and Gina were both on their way to the hospital, despite being hours out, Sam decided that he was going to pay Dean a visit. He headed down the hallway towards the room his big brother was being kept in, stopping at the doorway and staring at Dean lying lifelessly on the bed and hooked up to all kinds of machines.

"Oh, no…" Sam sniffed, walking into the room, his gaze never once leaving Dean's face. The last time he had seen his brother in a hospital bed, Dean had been told that his heart was so messed up he only had a short time to live. Sam hadn't accepted that, convincing his sibling to go and see a faith healer and as he stood at Dean's bedside he knew that he wasn't going to give up this time either.

A doctor came into the room behind him to do a routine check on Dean's vitals and he glanced at Sam, offering him a small friendly smile.

"Your father's awake. You can go see him if you like."

Sam glanced at the doctor; "Doc, what about my brother?"

The doctor looked up from reading the chart in his hands; "Well, he sustained serious injury; blood loss, contusions to his liver and kidney. But it's the head trauma I'm worried about. There's early signs of cerebral oedema."

"Well, what can we do?" Sam asked, the doctor looking back at him sympathetically.

"Well, we won't know his full condition until he wakes up…" He glanced at Dean. "If he wakes up."

"If?"

The doctor looked back at the anxious young man knowing that he was desperate for some reassurance that his brother was going to be okay but he had no choice but to tell him the truth.

"I have to be honest…" He placed Dean's chart back into its holder at the end of Dean's bed and made eye contact with Sam. "Most people with this degree of injury wouldn't have survived this long. He's fighting very hard. But you need to have realistic expectations."

The doctor left the room, leaving Sam to process his words and Sam looked at his brother, feeling helpless but making a solemn vow not to give up on him. Not yet.

A while later, John Winchester rested in his hospital bed, one arm in a sling. Like his eldest son, he had been admitted to the hospital but had come around from his concussion and was now under observation while Dean was down the corridor fighting for his life. The subject of medical insurance had been brought up and Sam stood beside his father's bed, watching as he pulled a card awkwardly out of his wallet using his single good hand.

"Here. Give them my insurance," John offered the card out to his youngest child who took it, smiling as he read the name embossed on it.

"Elroy McGillicutty?" Sam asked with a grin, John smiling as he watched him take a seat in the empty chair beside his bed.

"And his two loving sons," He said before his face fell into a more serious expression. "So, what else did the doctor say about Dean?"

"Nothing," Sam shrugged. "Look. The doctors won't do anything, then we'll have to, that's all. I don't know. I'll find some hoodoo priest and lay some mojo on him…" He told his father, a strange feeling that he had heard those exact words somewhere before but he couldn't quite place where.

"We'll look for someone," John agreed, Sam nodding his head.

"Yeah…"

"But Sam, I don't know if we're gonna find anyone," John told his son who looked back at him in disbelief, his dark gaze questioning his fathers doubt.

"Why not? I found that faith healer before," Sam reminded him, purposely leaving out the part when they found out that Roy LeGrange was actually getting a little help from his wife Sue Anne who was in cahoots with a Reaper.

"Right, that was, that was one in a million," John argued, Sam becoming angry at his words.

"So what? Do we just sit here with our thumbs up our ass?" He snapped and John shook his head at him.

"No, I said we'd look. All right? I'll check under every stone…" The head of the Winchester family insisted and there was a moment of silence between him and his son before he asked the question that had been on his mind since the moment he had regained consciousness. "Where's the Colt?"

Sam stared at his father in disbelief; "Your son is dying, and you're worried about the Colt?"

"We're hunting this demon, and maybe it's hunting us too. That gun may be our only card."

Sam conceded, too tired to argue with his Dad about his priorities; "It's in the trunk. They dragged the car to a yard off of I-83."

"All right…" John nodded his head slowly. "You've gotta clean out that trunk before some junk man see's what's inside."

"I already called Bobby. He's like an hour out, he's gonna tow the Impala back to his place," Sam explained wishing that his father would show more concern about Dean than the damn Colt.

"All right. You," John paused. "You go meet up with Bobby, you get that Colt, and you bring it back to me. And you watch out for hospital security."

"I think I've got it covered," Sam replied bluntly. "The girls should be here soon by the way…"

John looked at his son in surprise; "You called them?"

"Well, yeah…" Sam nodded. "Gina needs to be here for Dean, Dad…"

"You shouldn't have involved her…" John shook his head.

"Why not? She has every right to be here. She's Dean's girlfriend…" Sam argued, sitting forward in his seat.

"Because they could get followed, Sam…" John replied harshly. "And then what?"

"The girls can handle themselves, Dad. You're forgetting that Gina's a Baker…" Sam rose from his seat, looking back at his Dad and gesturing to the medical insurance card he held in his hand. "I'm going to go deal with this; I'll be back in a little bit…"

"Hey," John stopped Sam from moving away from the bed, picking up a slip of paper and handing it to him. "Here. I made a list of things I need, have Bobby pick them up for me."

Sam took the list, reading over what his father had written down; "Acacia? Oil of Abramelin? What's this stuff for?"

He looked up at John who simply stared back at him blankly.

"Protection," He told his son bluntly.

Sam nodded, folding over the list and heading towards the door. He paused, turning back to glance at his father, remembering what Yellow Eyes had said to him.

"Hey, Dad? You know, the demon, he said he had plans for me, and children like me. Do you have any idea what he meant by that?" The young hunter asked, watching in disappointment as his father shook his head.

"No, I don't…"

Sam stared at him for a moment before accepting his answer and leaving the room, heading towards the nurses station to hand in his father's medical insurance card.

The girls arrived at the hospital a lot quicker than expected thanks to Gina driving like a maniac down the highway to get to South Dakota in record time. It had still taken them five hours to get there but they had finally made it. They rushed into the building, both eager to be with their boys and were just about to ask the nurse behind the reception desk for details on the Winchester's when Harlow spotted Sam, his face swollen and bruised, walking towards the hot drinks machine.

"Sam!" She called out, running up to him as he spun around to face her and she threw her arms around him in a hug that was fuelled by happiness and relief.

"Hey Harl'" Sam greeted her, returning her embrace and burying his nose in her hair. "I can't believe you're here…"

Harlow stepped back to look up at him, holding him at arms length.

"Are you crazy? Of course I was going to come…" The redhead stated as she studied him. He had cuts on his face and blood stains on the brown jacket he was wearing but he was alive and that was all that mattered to her. She knew that things could have been a lot worse.

They shared a small smile before Sam stepped to her and pulled her into another hug, kissing the side of her head; "I'm so glad that you're here, Harl'…"

Gina approached them, her green eyes filled with worry; "Sam, where is he?"

Sam looked back at her, holding Harlow close to his chest and his eyes telling a tale of imminent heartbreak; "Gina, it's not looking good, just so you know…"

"I don't care," Gina stated adamantly. "Just tell me where he is, Sammy…" She demanded fiercely and Sam nodded his head, moving to place his arm around Harlow's shoulders so that he could keep her close to him.

"Follow me…"

The trio walked towards Dean's room in silence, Gina anxious about her boyfriend's current condition as she followed Sam and Harlow down the corridor. She felt her heart fall through to the pit of her stomach when Sam stopped outside an open door and stepped aside allowing her to catch her first glimpse of an unconscious Dean hooked up to all kinds of machines.

"Oh my God…" She whispered, walking into the room and standing beside Dean's bed.

Sam and Harlow walked into the room behind her, Sam letting go of Harlow to stand next to Gina.

"The doctor says we won't know his full condition until he wakes up…" The young hunter cast a sideways glance at the woman he already considered to be his sister-in-law. "If he wakes up…"

Gina glanced at him; "He's going to wake up, Sam. There's no 'if' about it…"

"Gina…"

"No…" The brunette shook her head, staring back at Dean. "He's going to wake up and I'm going to be right here when he does…"

Gina pulled up a chair and sat down beside the bed, taking hold of Dean's hand and stroking the pad of her thumb across his skin.

"It's okay, baby, I'm right here…" She told him. "We're going to get through this… I'm not losing you again, you hear me?"

Sam exchanged a glance with Harlow before clearing his throat and pulling his father's list out of his jeans pocket.

"Uh, Dad needs me to go to Bobby's and pick up some things…" He informed the girls and Gina dug one-handed into the purse on her lap, pulling out her car keys.

"Of course he does…" The brunette muttered, knowing that John was probably still on the hunt. "Take my car, Harlow will go with you…" She offered her car keys out to Sam, her gaze never leaving Dean's face.

"But Gina…" Harlow started to protest but Gina shook her head.

"Not now, Harl'…" She scolded the redhead. "Just go with Sam to Bobby's. I'm going to wait here for this son of a bitch to wake up…"

"Gina…" Sam trailed off when Gina shot him a meaningful glare.

"Go, Sam…" She snapped, thrusting the keys at him and Sam looked at Harlow helplessly, unsure of what he should do. Demons and other scary creatures, he could handle, but Gina when she was concerned about Dean was a force to be reckoned with and one that he wasn't willing to take on alone.

Harlow shrugged her shoulders at her boyfriend before stepping forward and taking the keys out of the brunettes hand; "We'll be back as soon as we can, Gina…"

Gina nodded, watching the redhead lead Sam out into the hallway before turning her attention back to Dean and bringing his hand up to her lips.

"I swear to God, Dean Winchester, when you wake up, I'm going to kick your ass for scaring the hell out of me…" She whispered, kissing his fingers.

Sam and Harlow stared at the mangled wreck that had once been Dean's beloved car as they stood hand in hand in Bobby's junkyard.

"Oh man, Dean is gonna be pissed…" Sam sighed, Harlow glancing up at him.

"Understatement of the year, Sammy…"

Bobby walked around the smashed Impala, inspecting it. He had to be honest; there wasn't much of a car left.

"Look, Sam…" He glanced over at the youngest of the Winchester brothers. "I say we empty the trunk, sell the rest for scrap…"

Sam shook his head, letting go of Harlow's hand to walk over to the car wreck; "No. Dean would kill me if we did that. When he gets better he's gonna want to fix this."

He reached inside the car, pulling out his laptop and sighing when the screen came right off in his hands and Bobby shook his head as he looked under the hood of the Impala.

"There's nothing to fix," He stated, slamming the hood down and looking back at Sam. "The frame's a pretzel, and the engine's ruined. There's barely any part worth salvaging…"

Sam leaned on the car, looking across at the man who had been more of a father to him at times than his own had; "Listen to me, Bobby. If there's only one working part, that's enough. We're not just going to give up on…"

Harlow came to stand next to him, sensing how upset he was getting and placed her hand on the small of his back, leaning into him. Bobby looked over at the young couple and could see how much hope they both held in their hearts not just for the car but for Dean as well and he nodded his head slowly.

"Okay…" The old hunter said quietly. "You got it…"

Sam pulled his father's list of his jacket pocket, offering it out to Bobby; "Here, uh, Dad asked for you to get this stuff for him."

Bobby took the slip of paper, reading over what was written on it and frowning; "What's John want with this?"

"Protection from the demon?" Sam guessed but the look Bobby gave him told him there was something his father wasn't telling him about the items on the list. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just, um…" Bobby trailed off, unsure of what to tell the young man in front of him.

"Bobby? What's going on?" Sam asked, Harlow clutching his arm as if to hold him back from flying off the handle and Bobby stared at them for a moment before letting out a breath.

"You two better follow me…." He said, gesturing to the couple to accompany him to his house where he knew he could tell them what he had to tell them in safety.

Gina sat beside Dean, her hand clutching his as her green eyes stared at his face willing him to open his eyes and look back at her.

"Hey Gina…" John said softly and the brunette looked up to see him standing in the doorway.

"Hey…" She greeted him, turning back to look at Dean.

"How's he doing?"

"He's fighting, as always…" Gina replied bluntly and John smiled slightly as he walked further into the room.

"That's my boy…" He said, walking around to the other side of Dean's bed and pulling up a chair.

"Have you called anyone for help?" Gina asked suddenly, glancing up at the man she knew would one day class as her father-in-law. "I mean, the doctors are just sitting around with their thumbs up their asses waiting for him to wake up but we know people, right? People who can help…" She looked back at Dean, stroking her fingers over his hand. "Sam found that faith healer to fix him that one time…"

"That was a lucky shot in the dark, Gina…" John replied, looking over at the brunette.

"So, what? We just sit here and wait for nature to take its course?" Gina snapped, John shaking his head at her.

"No…"

"Then call somebody for help, John! Surely you know someone who can lay some hoodoo mojo on him?" She implored, her green eyes pleading with the man across from her to do something other than sit there and watch Dean slowly fade away from them.

"I'm working on something…."

"You're working on sitting on your ass while your son dies…" Gina bit out angrily. "You know, he's done everything you've ever asked him to. Everything. He's sacrificed a Hell of a lot for you and this is how you're going to repay him? You're just going to sit there and watch him fight for his life? I mean, what the Hell kind of father are you, John?!"

John remained calm as he looked back at the brunette who was glaring at him. He knew she was only angry because of how scared she was for Dean; he understood that, he was scared too. He was just dealing with it in a different way.

"I told you I've got a plan…"

"Yeah, as always, the great John Winchester has a plan…"Gina huffed, shaking her head at him as he stood up out of his seat. "Where are you going now?" She demanded to know and John looked back at her.

"I'm getting off my ass and helping my son like you want me to…." He said taking one last look at his son before walking out of the room and Gina watched him go before turning back to Dean and squeezing his hand.

"No offence, baby, but your Dad's a jackass…"

Sam and Harlow returned from Bobby's and Sam was far from happy. He stalked into his father's room carrying the duffel bag full of things he had picked up at Bobby's, Harlow close behind him and hoping that he wasn't about to explode like he did at the junkyard when he'd discovered what his dad was really planning.

"You're quiet…" John pointed out, looking over at Sam who was staring out of the window, seething in anger.

Sam turned around at his fathers words, hurling the bag onto John's bed with a loud crash uncaring if he had broken anything inside of it as he glared at his dad; "Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"Sam…" Harlow attempted to keep the peace, stepping forward to placate Sam but he shrugged her off.

"What are you talking about?" John asked, feigning innocence which just seemed to make Sam angrier.

"That stuff from Bobby, you don't use it to ward off a demon, you use it to summon one. You're planning on bringing the demon here, aren't you? Having some stupid macho showdown?!" Sam started to pace the room, Harlow watching him.

"Sam, calm down…" She said but Sam shook his head, bringing his hands up to his hair and tugging at it in frustration as he looked back at her.

"No, Harlow, he's being an idiot…"

"I have a plan, Sam." John spoke up, making Sam turn quickly to look back at him.

"That's exactly my point! Dean is dying, and you have a plan!" He threw his hands up in the air as he stared his father down. "You know what; you care more about killing this demon than you do saving your own son!"

"Come on, Sam, don't do this…" Harlow pleaded with him, knowing that now was neither the time nor the place to have a heated argument. They all needed to focus on helping Dean get better, not turning on each other.

"Do not tell me how I feel! I am doing this for Dean!" John snapped, angry at his youngest son for accusing him of loving the cause more than his own flesh and blood.

"How? How is revenge going to help him? You're not thinking about anybody but yourself, it's the same selfish obsession!" Sam argued as Harlow tried to come between the two Winchester men in a bid to stop a war breaking out between them.

"Guys, come on…"

"You know, it's funny, I thought it was your obsession too! This demon killed your mother, killed your girlfriend. You begged me to be part of this hunt. Now if you'd killed that damn thing when you had the chance, none of this would have happened." John shouted at his son who looked back at him in disbelief.

"It was possessing you, Dad, I would have killed you too." Sam pointed out.

"Yeah, and your brother would be awake right now." John snapped, Sam glaring back at him.

"Will you two stop? This is not helping anyone!" Harlow insisted but the two men didn't even acknowledge the fact that she had even spoke, two busy fighting with each other to notice anything.

"Go to Hell." Sam moved away from his father's bed, hurt by his words.

"I should have never taken you along in the first place. I knew it was a mistake, I knew I was wrong…" John continued and Harlow had finally had enough.

"Just SHUT UP!" She yelled before John's glass of water flew off the table beside them and crashed to the ground, the glass shattering instantly.

The trio looked at each other in confusion, stunned by what had just happened just as alarms started to ring in the hallway and nurses and doctors ran past the room.

"Something's going on out there," John said, jerking his head at Sam telling him without words that he wanted him to go find out what was happening.

Gina stood in the doorway of Dean's room, her hands clasped together as she watched a team of doctors and nurses surround Dean's bed, resuscitating him as his vital signs monitor beeped relentlessly in the corner. Sam and Harlow ran up to her, desperate to know what was going on inside Dean's room.

"Gina, what is it?!" Harlow asked, watching as Gina shook her head and shrugged her shoulders, fighting back her tears.

"I don't know…." The brunette whispered. "The machines just started beeping and then everyone rushed in…"

Sam peered into the room, tears in his eyes as he watched the doctors and nurses fight to save his big brother's life; "No…"

"Come on, baby, keep fighting…." Gina urged Dean, Harlow rubbing a hand against her back soothingly as she held onto Sam's hand.

They watched as the medical staff went through the resuscitating procedure again, all three praying that Dean was going to pull through. Sam held onto Harlow's hand, his eyes never leaving his brother's body lying on the bed and then he felt something push past him, rushing into the room. He blinked, his brow furrowing in confusion when he realized that no one had entered the room.

"We have sinus rhythm…" One of the nurses called out and Gina let out a sigh of relief as she watched Dean's vital signs monitor show his heartbeat again.

"Damn you, Dean Winchester, for scaring me like that…" She muttered under her breath, staring over at her boyfriend as the medical staff started to leave his room.

"Hey, did you guys feel something just then?" Sam asked, looking down at the girls.

"Yeah, a whole load of relief…" Gina smiled back at him. "I'm going back in…"

Sam watched Gina walk back into Dean's room, taking up her rightful place at his bedside and Harlow looked up at him, knowing that something was playing on his mind.

"What is it, Sam? What did you feel?" She asked and Sam shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm not sure…." He sighed, pulling Harlow to him in a hug and kissing her hair. "I don't know what it was but… I think Dean's trying to reach out to me, Harl'. I swear I just felt him…"

Harlow pulled back to look back up into her boyfriend's eyes; "Is that even possible?"

"I don't know…." Sam shook his head and Harlow offered him a small, accepting smile before reaching up on her tiptoes to kiss his mouth.

"Let's go talk to your Dad about it…." She suggested. "If anyone knows about this sort of stuff, it'll be him, right?"

"Right…" Sam nodded, smiling back at her as she took his hand and led him back towards John's room.

"What do you mean, you felt something?" John asked, looking up at Sam and Harlow who were standing beside his bed looking just as perplexed as he was.

"I mean, it felt like, like Dean. Like he was there, just out of eyeshot or something. I don't know if it's my psychic thing or what…" Sam trailed off, looking at his dad questioningly. "But do you think it's even possible? I mean, do you think his spirit could be around?"

John smiled up at him; "Anything's possible."

"Well, there's one way to find out." Sam declared already turning to move towards the door.

"Where are you going?" John asked, Sam looking back at him.

"I gotta pick something up, I'll be back." He went to walk out into the hallway as Harlow watched him in silence, wondering where he was off to in such a hurry.

"Wait, Sam…" John called out to his son who stopped and looked back at him again. "I promise I won't hunt this demon. Not until we know Dean's okay," He vowed and Sam nodded his head acceptingly before leaving the room.

Harlow watched him go before looking back at John who inclined his head towards the door slightly, gesturing to her to go after Sam. She smiled before rushing out of the room, calling out to her boyfriend who turned to see her running up to him.

"Hey…" Harlow said when she reached Sam, looking up at him quizzically. "Are you going to tell me where you're going?"

"I've got an idea, that's all…." Sam replied, bringing his hand up to brush her fiery hair back away from her face as he looked at her. "Stay here with Dad and Gina, Harl'…"He told her. "I'll be right back, I swear…"

"Okay…" Harlow nodded and Sam sealed his vow with a kiss before walking off down the corridor and Harlow watched him go before deciding to go and check in with Gina.

Sam pushed the door to his brother's room open, entering quietly and smiling softly when he saw Harlow glance over at him from her spot at the end of Dean's bed; "Hey…"

"Hey…" The redhead jumped up off the bed and greeted her boyfriend with a hug. "What's that?" She wanted to know, pointing to the brown paper bag in his arms.

"Well, don't make fun of me for this but…" Sam started to explain as Gina turned around in her seat to look at him. "I think that Dean's around and if he is then there's one way we can talk to him…" He pulled a box labeled 'Mystical Talking Board' out of the bag and looked back at the girls expectantly.

"I'm not sitting down to do a séance with you, Sam…" Gina shook her head defiantly, clutching onto Dean's hand as she looked up at his younger brother.

"Gina, he's here…. Like a spirit, I just know it," Sam insisted, holding the box against his chest. "You may think that using this is stupid but what if it's the only way we can talk to him right now?"

"Do you really think Dean would approve of you using that dumb thing to try and contact him?" Gina asked, Sam glancing at his brother lying lifeless on the hospital bed.

"No," He shook his head. "He'd probably make some off-hand comment about slumber parties but I've got to do this…" He looked back at the brunette sitting beside his brother's bed. "I've at least got to give it a try anyhow. He'd do it for me; I just know that he would…"

Gina dropped her hold on Dean's hand, shaking her head at Sam; "You're nuts! And I can't deal with this right now!"

She walked out of the room, Sam watching her go as Harlow walked up to him placing her hand on his arm and he looked at her.

"Don't worry about her, okay? She's just scared out of her mind right now, Sam. I would be too if that was you lying there," The redhead told him, the pair glancing back at Dean.

There was a moment of silence as they gathered their thoughts, watching the machine breathe for the one man that had always seemed so unbreakable before the young couple looked back at each other.

"I don't know what else to do, Harl'…" Sam admitted and Harlow rubbed her hand against his arm as she offered him a small sympathetic smile.

"Look, don't worry, okay? Just do what you need to do and I'll go talk to Gina," She reached up and placed a tender kiss to his lips. "Tell him from me to hurry up and get his ass back where's he's needed…"

"I will, thanks Harlow…" Sam smiled gratefully at his girlfriend and she kissed him again.

"No problem, baby, it's why I'm here…" Harlow told him with a sweet smile before leaving the room so that he could attempt to contact Dean.

Sam circled around the bed and sat cross legged on the floor, opening the box and pulling out the board. He laid it flat out on the floor in front of him and positioned the pointer in the centre of the board.

"Dean? Dean, are you here?" He asked cautiously, glancing around as if to be expecting to see something move as he placed his fingers on the pointer.

Slowly the pointer started to move, sliding towards the word 'YES' on the board and Sam gasped, amazed that the board was working.

"It's good to hear from you, man. It hasn't been the same without you, Dean." He laughed with relief, watching as the pointer started to slide again, this time spelling out a word.

"Dean, what? H? U? Hunt? Hunting? What, are you hunting?" Sam asked his brother, his gaze focused on the pointer as it slid back to 'YES'.

"It's in the hospital, what are you hunting? Do, do you know what it is?" He paused, waiting for Dean's response before rephrasing his question. "What is it?"

Sam watched as the pointer started to slide again, spelling out another word.

"A reaper…." He said, figuring out what his brother was trying to tell him. "Dean. Is it after you?"

The pointer slid to 'YES' again and Sam sighed, there was no way to stop a Reaper, none that he knew of anyway.

"If it's here naturally, there's no way to stop it." He told Dean. "Man, you're, um…" He thought for a moment, staring down at the board before shaking his head. "No. No, no, no, um, there's gotta be a way…." He rose to his feet, pacing the floor as he tried to come up with a solution to his brother's problem. "There's gotta be a way. Dad'll know what to do."

Sam walked out of Dean's room, heading straight down the corridor to where he knew he would find his dad but when he got there he saw that the bed was empty and his dad was missing, as was the duffel bag Bobby had given him.

"Dad." He whispered, suspecting that his father had gone after the demon but at that moment in time he was more concerned about Dean so he walked into the room, grabbing his dad's journal from his personal effects drawer and heading back out into the corridor.

Walking down the hall, Sam bumped into Gina and Harlow who were returning from grabbing some coffee from the machine at the end of the corridor whilst Dean's doctor performed his hourly vitals check on his patient.

"Hey, have you seen Dad?" He asked, both girls shaking their heads at him in response.

"No, isn't he in his room?" Harlow looked up at Sam, watching as he shook his head and let out a sigh.

"No…"

"Maybe he's actually got off his ass to help Dean…" Gina sniped and Harlow looked back at her warningly.

"Gina…"

Sam let out a breath before attempting to change the topic of their conversation; "So, the board worked…"

Gina looked up at him instantly, her green eyes wide with surprise; "It did? I'll be damned…"

Sam nodded; "Dean's hunting…"

"Are you kidding me?" Gina rolled her eyes. That was just like her boyfriend, unconscious and on the brink of death but still on the job.

"He's after a Reaper…" Sam told her, Harlow glancing up at him in concern.

"But, Sam…" The redhead began capturing her boyfriend's attention. "Reaper's…."

"Take people when their time is up, I know…" Sam nodded again.

"Is it after Dean?" Harlow wanted to know, her heart breaking at the sight of Sam looking so defeated as he answered her.

"Yeah…"

"No, it can go to Hell…" Gina snapped, shaking her head. "It's not taking him…."

"Gina, if it's here naturally then we can't stop it…." Sam pointed out as Harlow nodded her head in agreement.

"Yeah, you can't kill Death, G'…"

Gina shook her head defiantly, moving to look into Dean's room through the observation window and watching as the doctor went about his checks; "No, there has to be a way and if your idiot father isn't around to help then maybe we'll find something in his damn journal…"

Sam tapped his fingers against the journal in his hands and smiled back at the girls; "That's exactly what I was thinking…"

The doctor walked out of Dean's rooms, smiling at the trio as he passed them and they entered the room, closing the door behind them. Sam perched himself at the end of Dean's bed, Harlow taking up the space beside him as Gina sat down in the chair she had claimed as her own the moment she had arrived.

"Hey…" Sam greeted his brother. "So, Dad wasn't in his room. But I've got his journal, so who knows? Maybe there's something here." He flipped open the journal in his hands, leafing through it as Harlow placed a supportive hand on his shoulder and read the pages with him.

"Sam…" Gina spoke up suddenly, glancing over at the young hunter and Sam looked up from reading the journal.

"Yeah?"

Gina smiled at him, holding Dean's hand tightly within her own; "Thanks for not giving up on him. I'm sure he appreciates it…"

Sam smiled back at her before allowing his gaze to fall upon his siblings unconscious form; "He's my brother, Gina. There's nothing I wouldn't do for him…"

The night rolled on and there was still no change in Dean's current condition. Gina had fallen asleep in her chair, her head resting on the bed and her chestnut locks covering her face. Harlow was slumped in another chair near the back of the room, nestled down inside her oversized hoodie and sleeping off what had been quite an eventful day for everyone. There was still no sign of John to be found and as Sam walked back into his brother's room he realized that he was probably the only one still awake thanks to all the coffee he had been consuming.

He closed the door quietly, smiling slightly at the sight of the girls sleeping and crossed the room to stare out of the window into the darkness of the world outside the hospital. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he decided to attempt to make contact with his brother again.

"Dean, are you here?" Sam looked around; waiting patiently for any sign that his sibling's spirit form was with him but when he got nothing he turned around to face Dean lying on the bed. "I couldn't find anything in the book. I don't know how to help you. But I'll keep trying, all right? As long as you keep fighting….I mean, come on, you can't, you can't leave me here alone with dad, we'll kill each other, you know that..." He paused, walking over to the bed. "Dean you've got to hold on. You can't go, man, not now. We were just starting to be brothers again. Can you hear me?" He reached down and allowed his hand to find Dean's, smiling slightly when he thought about how pissed his brother would be if he attempted to do something like this if he was conscious. "You can't go, man. I need you, Gina needs you…" He gave Dean's hand a squeeze, holding back his tears as he glanced over at the sleeping redhead at the back of the room. "Hell, I think even Harlow needs you…" Sam looked back at Dean, giving his hand a shake as he urged him to return to them. "We all need you, Dean, so you have to come back to us, all right?"

Sam sat down on the end of his brother's bed, watching the vital signs monitor and praying to whoever was listening that Dean was going to be okay. Harlow stirred in the corner of the room, opening her eyes and lifting her head to look over at Sam. She smiled when he glanced over at her, taking a moment to allow herself to wake up properly before getting up out of the chair and walking over to him.

"Hey you," Sam stretched his arms out towards the sleepy redhead, pulling her to him as soon as she was close enough.

"Hey…" Harlow stifled a yawn as she snuggled into Sam, gripping fistfuls of his jacket and breathing in his scent.

Sam buried his nose in her hair, kissing her head before moving to rest his own head against it; "I'm glad you're here, you know?"

"I know," Harlow giggled a little. "You've told me so enough times today…"

"I'd be going crazy right now if you weren't here," Sam admitted, allowing his fingers to curl the ends of her hair. "I don't know what I'd do without you…"

Harlow pulled back out of his embrace slightly to look up at him; "Let's not ever find out…"

She reached up, brushing her lips against his before Sam pulled her into a tight hug.

"Man, I love you…" He whispered and Harlow smiled, resting her head against his chest and listening to the steady beat of his heart.

"I love you too…"

Their moment of bliss was suddenly interrupted by a gargling sound and they broke apart to see Dean wide awake and choking on the tube in his throat.

"Dean?" Sam asked in surprise, rushing over to his brother as Harlow looked on, stunned by what was happening.

Gina snapped awake, jumping up from her seat and leaning over her boyfriend in concern; "Dean!"

Sam rushed out into the hallway, yelling to the nurses; "Help! I need help!"

"I can't explain it," Dean's doctor shook his head, staring at the clipboard in his hand in amazement. "The oedema's vanished. The internal contusions are healed. Your vitals are good…" He looked up at Dean, smiling at him. "You have some kind of angel watching over you."

"Thanks doc" Dean smiled gratefully at his doctor, watching as he left the room before turning his attention back to his brother who was standing next to his bed along with Gina and Harlow. "So, you said a reaper was after me?"

Sam nodded; "Yeah."

"How'd I ditch it?" Dean wanted to know and Sam shrugged his shoulders.

"You got me…" He replied. "Dean, you really don't remember anything?"

"No…" Dean shook his head, gesturing with his hand towards his midriff. "Except this pit in my stomach. Sam, something's wrong."

Gina leaned forward, smoothing her hand over Dean's short locks and smiling at him; "Well, I'm just glad to have you back, baby. We all are…."

Dean smiled up at her and Gina laced her fingers with his before brushing her lips against his forehead. There was a small knock at the door and Dean looked over to see his dad standing in the doorway, unsure if he should come into the room or not.

"How you feeling, dude?" He asked, trying to ignore the glare he was receiving off the feisty brunette beside his eldest son.

"Fine, I guess. I'm alive." Dean replied, watching as John walked cautiously into the room.

"That's what matters." He smiled.

"Where were you last night?" Sam demanded to know, still angry that his father hadn't been in his room when he needed him.

"I had some things to take care of," John stated, Sam rolling his eyes at him.

"Well, that's specific."

Dean glanced up at his little brother, his eyes pleading with him not to start a fight; "Come on, Sam"

Sam ignored his older brother's request, determined to get an answer out of his father; "Did you go after the demon?"

"Sammy, drop it." Harlow scolded him.

"No…" John answered his youngest son, lowering his head and Sam scoffed, throwing his arms out to either side as he started to pace the floor.

"You know, why don't I believe you right now?"

John raised his gaze to meet that of Sam's, a pleading look on his face; "Can we not fight? You know, half the time we're fighting, I don't know what we're fighting about. We're just butting heads. Sammy, I, I've made some mistakes. But I've always done the best I could. I just don't want to fight anymore, okay?"

Sam stopped pacing, looking his father straight in the eye; "Dad, are you alright?"

"Yeah…." John nodded, smiling slightly. "Yeah, I'm just a little tired…" He let out a breath and glanced at Dean before looking back at Sam. "Hey son, would you, uh, would you mind getting me a cup of caffeine?"

"Yeah…." Sam agreed, nodding his head. "Yeah, sure."

"I'll go with you." Harlow offered, looping her arm around Sam's and walking out of the room with him.

Dean glanced at Gina, knowing that his father wanted to talk to him on his own and worked his jaw before clearing his throat a little.

"G', do you mind asking the nurse if I can have some water?" He asked, looking at his girlfriend and gesturing with his hand towards the empty pitcher on his table. "My mouth's as dry as the Sahara desert…"

"Sure, baby, I'll be right back…" Gina smiled, pressing her lips to Dean's forehead and moving to pick up the water pitcher. "John…" She muttered, pushing past the older man as she left the room.

"Gina…" John watched her go before looking back at Dean. "She's a firecracker that one…"

Dean smiled proudly; "She sure is…"

"You make sure you hold onto her…" John told him and Dean nodded his head.

"I will…" He studied his father's face, noticing the sad look in his eyes. "What is it?"

John looked back at Dean, unsure of how to start the conversation he knew would be his last one with him. They'd been through so much together and throughout it all, Dean had been the one holding the family together. A job that should have been John's cross to bear, not Deans.

"You know, when you were a kid, I'd come home from a hunt, and after what I'd seen, I'd be, I'd be wrecked. And you, you'd come up to me and you, you'd put your hand on my shoulder and you'd look me in the eye and you'd… You'd say "Its okay, Dad"" John paused. "Dean, I'm sorry…"

"What?" Dean looked puzzled by what his father was telling him, he didn't understand why his dad suddenly felt like he had to share his feelings with him. The feeling that something was wrong in the pit of his stomach grew heavier, weighing him down as he looked up into his father's sad eyes.

"You shouldn't have had to say that to me, I should have been saying that to you. You know, I put, I put too much on your shoulders, I made you grow up too fast. You took care of Sammy, you took care of me. You did that, and you didn't complain, not once. I just want you to know that I am so proud of you." John continued with his speech, intent on letting his son know how he felt as best as he could. He'd never been good at showing his emotions, not since Mary had died.

Dean eyed his father suspiciously; "This really you talking?"

"Yeah…" John nodded. "Yeah, it's really me."

"Why are you saying this stuff?" Dean wanted to know and John stepped closer to him, placing his hand on his shoulder as he looked down at him with a sad smile.

"I want you to watch out for Sammy, okay?"

"Yeah, Dad, you know I will..." Dean looked worried. "You're scaring me."

"Don't be scared, Dean…" John said soothingly before leaning over and whispering a secret into Dean's ear. One that tore the young hunter's world apart and he pulled back from his dad, looking at him in shock as he processed his hushed words.

John patted his son's shoulder and turned to walk out of the room, knowing that it was time for him to leave and Dean stared after him, willing him to turn around and stay.

"So, do you think that everything is going to go back to normal now?" Harlow asked, linking arms with Sam as they walked back towards Dean's room with John's requested cup of coffee.

"As normal as it gets for us, sure…." Sam nodded, smiling at her. "We still have to gank Yellow Eyes though, I'm pretty sure that's still on the agenda unless there's something Dad's not telling us…"

Harlow glanced up at him; "Yeah, but I guess first we have to break the news to Dean about Baby…"

"Yeah, he's not going to be pleased about that…" Sam frowned at the thought of having to tell his brother the bad news about his car. "Maybe we should let Gina tell him…"

Harlow laughed; "Yeah, that might actually soften the blow a little…"

They continued on down the hall, talking softly to each other the way couples do. Harlow was just telling Sam about the new book she had been reading lately when they passed by a seemingly empty room and Sam glanced into it out of curiosity but soon wished that he hadn't.

"Dad?!" He gasped and Harlow stopped talking, immediately looking over to where Sam was staring and saw John bleeding on the floor, unconscious.

"Oh God…" She cried and then everything seemed to slow right down.

Sam dropped the cup of coffee to the floor and Harlow dodged out of the way of the hot dark liquid as she screamed, watching Sam rush to his fathers side. He kneeled over the lifeless body of the man who had seemed perfectly fine only moments ago and grabbed him in his arms, urging him to wake up as he called out for help.

"Help! Somebody help!"

Sam and Harlow stood in the doorway, watching as the crowd of doctors and nurses tried in vain to resuscitate John. Dean came up behind them, Gina at his side and pushed past his brother to get a look at what was going on inside the room. A young nurse noticed the foursome hovering in the doorway and walked over, ushering them outside into the hall.

"No, no, no, it's our dad…" Dean told her as she attempted to push him out of the room. "It's our dad!" He glanced over her shoulder, watching as the doctors and nurses surrounding his father attempted to shock him awake. "Come on." He pleaded with his dad, hoping that he was going to come back to them but knowing in the pit of his stomach that this was the end.

"Okay, stop compressions." A doctor called out as Dean, Sam and the girls watched anxiously from the doorway.

"Come on, come on." Dean urged his dad, not wanting to believe what he already knew to be the truth.

"Still no pulse." A nurse stated, glancing over at the doctor who had been amazed by Dean's miraculous recovery.

"Okay, that's it everybody…." He said, his team stepping back from John's bed and as the four young twenty-something's looked on in a mixture of shock and disbelief he looked down at his wrist watch.

"I'll call it. Time of death: 10:41am."

**To Be Continued…..**


End file.
